WIRED wrote Elon Musk’s Twitter updates are often late, so forgive me for getting back to that—but for those of us who are as often online as I am, let me ask: What the heck happened last weekend?
I woke up Sunday morning to know that Twitter would block all mentions or links to “competitive” services, from Instagram to Facebook, to Linktree everywhere. It is supposed to “prevent free advertising” of the platform’s competitors and “cut down on spam”. Of course, anyone with two neurons rubbing together can tell that this is a cover story—you don’t need a journalist to tell you that—and the great link ban mostly intended to prevent the flow of active and widespread users to other platforms while controlling speech in the name of Musk’s mission to [checks notes] … protect the right to freedom of speech.
Essentially, a small online riot ensued, with Twitter users from everywhere criticizing the new policy. Within hours, not only was the company back, but all mentions of the policy more than a day old were removed from the company’s Twitter feed and website. It was a whirlwind for anyone online to see it. (Although if you miss it, I won’t tell you miss itif you understand what I mean.)
But I’m not here to speculate on the real motive behind Sunday’s whip; I don’t think that’s helpful. After all, intent and impact are separate things. No matter what someone’s intentions are when they hit you in the face, they still hit you in the face. Now you have to deal with the situation they have created. So instead, my thoughts turn—and I hope yours will too—to those affected by the weekend’s policy change. Twitter users spent Sunday wondering if the platform they used and trusted to find and promote their work, make connections with others in their field and in many fields. appropriate, based on which to earn income, allow them to continue or not.
When we at WIRED talk about “platform and power”, this is exactly what we are talking about. Of course, any manager of any platform, whether it’s the CEO, founder, or middle manager, has the undisputed duty of setting and enforcing policies. books and instructions for the legal and safe use of the platform. That is not the question. Without such rules, the online space can go awry quickly. The problem is when those platforms choose to actively harm their users through policy decisions, and when those changes are large enough to force users to adapt or give up.
Let me explain: I am fortunate enough to know many creators as well as many journalists and tech workers. When I woke up Sunday to the news, it was delivered to me by tweets from artists fearing that they would be banned from Twitter for affiliation with their own portfolios and with platforms. where they accept commissions for their artwork. I’ve read horror stories of authors who were terrified that the Linktrees their publishers asked them to create to promote their books, reviews, and Goodreads profiles suddenly turned into behavior. Offenses can be banned on Twitter.
My friends on Twitch interrupted their stream to discuss the news, worried they wouldn’t be able to tweet to announce they were starting a new stream or add a link to their bio. Their Twitter to help viewers find them. All of this creates a potential loss of income for those who, in my opinion, need it more than those making these policy decisions. After all, it is these innovators whose disruptive entrepreneurial spirit everyone in Silicon Valley claims to want to promote and empower.
