Oh, how the fates were wrong! Against all pessimistic odds, billionaire Tesla CEO Elon Musk buys out Twitter for $44 billion after a meeting with Twitter’s board just this Sunday. Likewise, Twitter had also just recently confirmed that it has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by Musk, which will have massive implications for the platform’s future.
Musk’s plan, as he’s voiced numerous times, is to take Twitter private to reduce its reliance on ads, thus enabling it to be more open to ‘free speech’, however Musk makes such out to be.
Twitter: A New Saga
Musk is known to be a very vocal proponent of free speech and has often criticized Twitter’s moderation efforts. Now, he’ll be able to essentially ‘remake’ Twitter as he sees fit, which will likely see big changes to how it would regulate speech and change its approaches to moderation entirely. The immediate question on everyone’s mind is probably ‘What now?’
For the moment, that question is a bit difficult to directly answer. The truth? No one can tell for certain, not even experts, analysts, or the former Twitter board. Musk himself might not even have ironed out all the chinks yet. However, based on his recent Tweets, we have a good inkling as to what direction he’ll likely take.
So far, there are his most perceived areas of focus:
Restoring Free Speech
Free speech has always kind of been Elon’s thing, which he’s now taking fully to Twitter. Musk publicly decried Twitter’s past actions of silencing certain users and has even voiced his opinions on the platform’s decision to ban former US President Donald Trump. What Musk is trying to point out here is that by going into private ownership, Twitter would have more freedom with what it can allow.
Though a shift of this caliber would mean that Twitter would have to undergo an extreme structural overhaul – in place of removing its reliance on ad revenue, Musk would have to find another way for Twitter to generate revenue, which, so far, his only option seems to lie with Twitter Blue.
Open Source Algorithm
Another element of Musk’s Twitter takeover is pushing for algorithmic transparency, giving users to both understand and control (although limited) how the system decided what is relevant to them.
Musk explains:
“Any changes to people’s tweets – if they’re emphasized or de-emphasized – that action should be made apparent, so anyone can see that that action has been taken so there’s no sort of behind-the-scenes manipulation, either algorithmically or manually.”
Twitter is already exploring this with its ‘Bluesky Initiative’, though the inherent complexities of understanding such might still prove challenging for most regular folk. However, though a good idea, going after more transparency is not without its risks. Avoiding tedious details, let’s just say that allowing users to identify and control key aspects that they may or may not want to include in their experiences could contribute to the echo chamber effect.
Giving Bots The Boot
Musk has made it clear that he doesn’t like bots on Twitter. Pre-Musk acquisition, Twitter was already combatting a growing issue regarding bots, which you can now tell would likely escalate under Mr. Tesla’s ownership. In the past, the question was if Twitter even wanted to tackle bots, seeing as how there are arguments that state that bots could be more beneficial to the platform. Perhaps in going private, the emphasis on meeting higher usage numbers takes a bit of the emphasis away from bot reliance, allowing stronger action to ultimately decide the fate of bots on the platform.
The Wrap
There are way more intricacies and implications regarding this news, but for the sake of at least throwing you into the loop, we decided to simplify things a bit just so it’d be easier for readers to wrap their heads around what’s currently going on with Twitter. The purchase of a man of an entire social network also brings up concerns about elitism, about the possibilities of the app locking out less financially-abled users and regions. However, if that does happen, then how would Musk be able to claim that Twitter is for free speech? It’s no longer free speech the moment social status dictates who and who cannot use Twitter.
It’s certainly a once-in-a-lifetime development and one that, again, showcases the disproportionate power of the billionaire class. But hey, what can anyone really do about it, right? Deny as we might, we all know that money runs the world. Money is power, and politics – decision-making, public discourse, social involvement – is all about influence and power. Twitter 2.0, we’re waiting for you.
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