Elon Musk’s new Twitter purchase has many feeling pessimistic about the social media platform’s future. Art by: Melissa Melgar
By Melissa Melgar, Staff Reporter
Tesla chief executive Elon Musk finalized his $44 billion purchase of social media company Twitter on Oct. 27. Now that he’s officially the owner of Twitter, the deal has caused a lot of mixed emotions among Twitter users.
“Elon Musk could have ended world hunger and poverty, and he decided to f- up Twitter for $44 billion instead,…” tweeted one user, Chaudhary Shaharyar.
Musk first announced his deal on April 14, when he had originally offered $43 billion in cash. Twitter accepted the deal 11 days later for $44 billion. He announced his purchase by tweeting, “the bird is freed.” With this purchase, he claimed he would make significant changes to the social media website, starting with getting rid of spam accounts. He has since reinstated Ye (formerly known as Kanye West) and Donald Trump’s problematic accounts.
One of the first steps as the owner was to transform the company. He started off by firing over half of the employees that criticized him on Twitter and on the company’s private Slack. “I would like to apologize for firing these geniuses. Their immense talent will no doubt be of great use elsewhere,” Musk tweeted.
California State University, Dominguez Hills professor of business law, Charles Thomas, explained why Musk’s offer was too good for the social media company to turn down.
“Musk’s offer for Twitter was good for existing shareholders, as it represented a 38% premium over the previous share price. This is why the board of directors for Twitter agreed to Musk’s offer,” Thomas said in an email. “Even if they didn’t agree with Musk’s direction, they could not ignore the opportunity for the shareholders to earn 38% on their shares. Musk tried to walk away, but when faced with litigation, he went through with the deal.”
Users from around the world expressed their concerns on Twitter due to Musk’s statements about wanting to ensure free speech. According to the Los Angeles Times, he plans to bring back accounts that were kicked off Twitter, such as former President Trump’s. Recently, he started to ban accounts that have made fun of him, such as comedian Kathy Griffin, who changed her profile to impersonate him.
“It remains to be seen what changes Musk will make to Twitter. He has suggested that Twitter is the proverbial ‘town square’ and would like less ‘moderation’ of content on Twitter,” Thomas continued. “However, some view Twitter as the ‘gladiator ring’ where misinformation battles with bots and hackers and without some moderation, members will abandon the platform.”
Another major change coming to Twitter that Musk has implemented is that verification checks, also known as “blue checks”, will now be $8 dollars per month. Whether the user is an influencer or politician, there will be a monthly fee in order to keep that official blue check next to their profiles. This has caused a lot of people who are verified on Twitter to take their platforms to social media websites like Instagram and TikTok.
“Similarly, Musk appears to be offering a subscription model for a premium Twitter experience. The transition from free to subscription is difficult to achieve, but this is no different than Spotify or Apple Music without advertising. We shall see,” Thomas said.
Many users believed that he would allow more access to free speech, but he cleared that up in a recent tweet. His new policy is “freedom of speech, but not freedom of reach.”.
“Hate is not a viable business model for affiliations with corporate brands and well-meaning citizens alike. It is precisely this audience that forced Musk to pay $44 Billion. Keeping that audience is essential to preserving this investment,” Thomas continued.
Twitter users now have to wait and see what the future holds for the social media site. Will this be the end of an era? That is now in the hands of Elon Musk and his team.
