According to Roger Montti’s article on Search Engine Journal, titled “WordPress X Account’s ‘Childish’ Trolling Causes Backlash,” the WordPress community reacted strongly after the official WordPress.org X (formerly Twitter) account posted what many perceived as an unprofessional and mocking comment aimed at the FAIR Project.
Controversy Around the FAIR Project
Montti explains that the incident centers on the FAIR (Federated and Independent Repositories) Project, an open-source initiative launched in 2025 to decentralize the distribution of WordPress plugins and themes. The project emerged following actions by WordPress co-creator Matt Mullenweg and Automattic that temporarily cut WP Engine off from plugin updates, exposing how centralized the WordPress distribution system had become.
FAIR’s goal is to prevent a single individual or organization from having unilateral control over plugin and theme distribution.
The Triggering Event
The backlash began after FAIR experienced a technical issue with a plugin update (version 1.2.1) that required some users to update it manually. Shortly afterward, the official WordPress.org X account posted a sarcastic message implying that the FAIR project was failing, in a tone many community members described as mocking and dismissive.
Montti notes that this type of post was highly unusual for the WordPress account, which is typically reserved for announcements, education, and positive community messaging.
Community Reaction
The response from the WordPress community was swift and largely negative. Developers and contributors criticized the post as “childish,” “toxic,” and “unprofessional,” with several prominent voices expressing embarrassment that an official WordPress channel was used for what appeared to be trolling.
Some replies were reportedly hidden by the WordPress account, further escalating frustration. Critics argued that the post reflected poorly on WordPress leadership and undermined the spirit of open-source collaboration.
Broader Implications
Montti highlights that the controversy is not just about a single social media post, but about trust, leadership, and governance within the WordPress ecosystem. For many contributors, the incident reinforced concerns that personal or political disputes are spilling into official communication channels, damaging WordPress’s reputation as a neutral, community-driven project.
The episode adds to ongoing tensions within the WordPress community following the broader conflicts of 2025. It underscores how closely developers and users are watching how WordPress leadership represents the project publicly.