Foreign interference or opportunistic grifting: why are so many pro-Trump X accounts based in Asia?

A new feature on the social media platform formerly known as Twitter allows users to see the location of other accounts. It has resulted in a firestorm of recriminations

When X rolled out a new feature revealing the locations of popular accounts, the company was acting to boost transparency and clamp down on disinformation. The result, however, has been a circular firing squad of recriminations, as users turn on each other enraged by the revelation that dozens of popular America first" and pro-Trump accounts originated overseas.

The new feature was enabled over the weekend by X's head of product, Nikita Bier, who called it the first step in securing the integrity of the global town square." Since then many high-engagement accounts that post incessantly about US politics have been unmasked" by fellow users.