Soon after Elon Musk took control of Twitter, some people began to check if Twitter’s policies on disinformation were still being enforced.
After that Elon Musk Taking control of Twitter, a number of conservative individuals wasted no time jumping on the platform and recalculating long-debunked conspiracy theories in an attempt to “test” whether the Twitter’s policy on misinformation is still enforced.
Twitter did not announce any immediate policy changes, and in a tweet posted Friday afternoon, Musk said Twitter would form a “content moderation board with diverse views.” ” and “no major content decisions or account recovery will occur prior to that panel convening. ”
But that hasn’t stopped users from cheering – or criticizing – what they expect is a swift acceptance of Musk’s previous pledges to cut censorship in the name of promoting free speech. Some people are all too eager to see what they can get under the new regime.
Prominent right-wing pundits tweeted buzzwords like “ivermectin” and “Trump won” to see if they would be penalized because the content they suggested was previously flagged. Ivermectin, an inexpensive drug that kills parasites in humans and animals, has been promoted by some Republican lawmakers and conservative talk show organizers as an effective way to COVID-19 treatment. But medical experts have pushed back, warning that there is little evidence to support the belief that it works.
“Ok, @elonmusk, is this in..?” Steve Cortes, former commentator for conservative TV network Newsmax and adviser to the former President Donald Trump wrote in a tweet where he included a microphone emoticon. “There are TWO ITEMS TRUMP WON IVERMECTIN ROCKS.”
In a letter intended to allay advertisers’ fears, on Thursday, Musk announced that Twitter will not be a “free-for-all hell scene where anything can be said without have consequences.”
But the jury is still out on what will happen to the social media platform – and what it will tolerate. Observers are keeping an eye on Who stay, who goes, and who is likely to return to the list of people the platform has banned for years. They range from Trump, to conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke – none of them have returned to the platform so far.
The Associated Press examined at least a dozen other Twitter accounts that have been suspended by the platform – including those used by right-wing activist James O’Keefe and MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell – and each account has issued an “account suspended” notice as of Friday afternoon.
At least one person still found a way to get his message out.
“I’m so glad that Twitter is now in healthy hands and will no longer be run by left-wing tyrants and people who truly hate our country,” Trump said Friday morning. a post on social media platform Truth Social, leaving no indication as to whether he will return to the platform, although Musk has said he will allow it.
“I LOVE TRUTH!”, he said, adding Twitter would be “better” if it worked to remove bots and the fake accounts “hurt it very badly.”
Earlier, news outlets reported that Kanye West, the rapper known legally as Ye, appears to have returned to Twitter after his account was locked earlier this month for protesting posts on the platform. society.
But there is no evidence that his account status has changed or that Musk played a role, and there is no indication of recent activity. Twitter did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether Ye would return to the platform. The rapper and fashion designer has also been suspended Instagramwhere his account there was recently restored.
Meanwhile, dozens of extremist profiles – some newly created – have circulated racial slurs and Nazi images while expressing gratitude to Musk for his new leadership. he. One such post shared a breaking news update about Musk’s takeover of the company, racistly tweeting and the message, “thank you Elon.” Another anonymous account tweeted, “Elon now controls Twitter, spreading racial slurs,” along with several derogatory comments.
“His acquisition of Twitter opened Pandora’s box,” the Ultraviolet advocacy group said in a prepared statement on Friday, urging Musk, Twitter’s chief executive, and the company’s board of directors. continues to enforce the ban on Trump “as well as the right to violence. -radicals and white supremacists.”
Some users reacted to this news by threatening to quit and others mocking them for doing so. The terms “Elon” and “delete” popped up in top Twitter trends on Friday as users discussed the failure. Speculation also pervades the platform. Some are worried that their Twitter follower count is dropping, theorizing that Twitter may be cleaning up the bot. Other users have posted unverified reports that their “likes” are dwindling.
“Elon Musk bought a platform, not people,” said Jennifer Grygiel, a social media expert and professor at Syracuse University. “And we still have choices in how we receive news and information and how we communicate.”
Grygiel said there would be a flight in quality if Twitter fell into further turmoil under Musk, and it probably wouldn’t be such a bad thing as the platform increasingly serves the public’s media interests. company and the state.
And as always, users are quick to mock the jokes – aiming to cut through the disorder in more humorous ways.
“In respect Elon now owns this site, I want to start total chaos,” CNN commentator Bakari Sellers wrote in a Tweet on Friday morning. “Better Popeyes or Bojangle and why?”
