Twitter Reacts to Twitter Acquisition

In case you in some way missed the information: It’s official, Elon Musk has purchased Twitter. It’s been months of tedious backwards and forwards, lawsuits, whistleblowing, and inanity—however lastly, that headline I wrote again in April is correct.

And, because the cogs of Musk’s Twitter takeover start to show, chaos abounds. It is, to this point, unclear which of the billionaire’s guarantees to unleash “free speech” upon the platform will truly come to fruition.

How, as an illustration, will Elon Musk handle the varied authoritarian world leaders congratulating him on his new function of Twitter proprietor? What will Musk do with the Twitter staff who’re/have been days away from vesting within the firm’s compensation program. Will previously banned accounts truly resurface? Will hate speech thrive (much more than it already does) on the platform?

None of those questions even have solutions but, however the ways in which folks with vested pursuits in Twitter and Musk are responding on-line can present a touch of what may come subsequent.

So, let’s begin with the world powers. Russian politician, Dmitry Medvedev, wished Musk luck “in overcoming political bias and ideological dictatorship on Twitter.” The former president and prime minister of Russia, and present safety council deputy chair, additionally playfully(?) scolded the world’s richest man for his help of Starlink satellite tv for pc web in Ukraine. And sure, sadly Musk has held onto his title even after the $44 billion Twitter buy.

Saudi Arabian prince and billionaire businessman, Al Walheed bin Talal Al Saud, known as Musk his “dear friend” in a tweet alongside a press launch asserting the rollover of his Twitter share possession to the Tesla CEO. “Together all the way,” he added—together with a handshake emoji.

Meanwhile, the EU’s commissioner for inner market Thierry Breton pointed out that Elon’s “freed bird” will nonetheless must “fly by our rules.”

Although Musk has beforehand promised to welcome again distinguished banned figures (i.e. Donald Trump) to the platform, as of writing, Trump has but to re-appear on Twitter. In his place, Trump’s sycophants have been quick to congratulate the SpaceX founder for his new place. Congressional Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) posted “Congratulations @elonmusk! Now please bring back America’s most trusted news source. @TheBabylonBee.”

And Virginia Senator Dick Black erroneously claimed that he was already experiencing a free-er Twitter. “I’ve been locked out of my Twitter account leading up to the midterm elections. Suddenly, I have access today. Congratulations, Elon Musk,” Black posted. However, his account tweeted two days in the past (and two days earlier than that). Based on the Senator’s on-line exercise, it doesn’t seem to be he was meaningfully “locked out” of something.

Musk has vowed a number of adjustments to return on the platform. Just yesterday, he insinuated there can be some kind of “opt-in” choice to entry an unmoderated model of the location, whereas claiming it wouldn’t turn into a “hellscape.” Yet these celebrating prompt shifts in Twitter’s moderation are probably doing so prematurely. Musk himself tweeted on Friday that, “No major content decisions or account reinstatements will happen,” till a brand new “content moderation council” is fashioned and convenes. 

For instance, the far-right conspiracy theorist Stew Peters who has been banned from the platform for months, created a brand new account on Thursday. Peters tweeted out “I’m BAAAAAAAAAAACK,” but was banned once more by Friday morning, based on a report from The Washington Post.

Undoubtedly, some people feel that they are extra “free” on Twitter, now than earlier than—emboldened partly by the sacking of Vijaya Gadde, Twitter’s former head of authorized, coverage, and belief. And so, there’ve been a number of round-ups highlighting a seeming instant-rise in profanity and racist language. However, it’s essential to notice that hate speech has thrived on the platform for years, and moderation has perennially struggled to handle it.

Aside from authoritarians and gleeful racists, most of the folks responding to the Twitter information are Twitter staff. Although in a roundabout way answerable for the destiny of the free world, or no matter, loads hangs within the steadiness for these firm staff as properly. The platform’s 7,500 employees have been slated to vest in Twitter’s compensation program on Tuesday. Now, whether or not or not they’ll be obtain their promised payouts stays a thriller, based on a report from The New York Times.

It’s additionally unknown who at Twitter will retain their jobs. Earlier this week, Musk threatened to chop 75% of the workers. Although he since recanted that assertion, the vibe amongst staff is actually unsettled.

“The man brought a sink, I am fully expecting him to fire 69% of us on Friday at 4:20pm,” Hugo Striedinger, a software program engineer on the social media firm, tweeted.

Other staff additionally posted messages of anger, critique and/or solidarity, many below the hashtag #OneTeam.

Finally, a few the supporting characters behind Musk’s Twitter acquisition celebrated. Tech investor Jason Calacanis, who was featured in a lot of Musk’s personal texts filed in Delaware Chancery Court, posted that he would fortunately settle for a place as Twitter’s “Chief Meme Officer.”

Joe Rogan (one other of Musk’s textual content confidants), retweeted a Libs of TikTok submit that implied 75% of Twitter staff should be fired due to the advantages the corporate supplies to them.

In the approaching days and weeks, Twitter’s future will turn into extra sure. But till then, no less than we will look to the celebrities and the tweets for a style of what’s to return.