On Monday, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Tesla and the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, acquired Twitter for $44 billion, ushering a new era of private ownership in the social media platform’s history.
The company’s shareholders will be compensated $54.20 in cash for each common stock they own after the takeover, which was unanimously approved by the Twitter board. The final step before Musk assumes ownership is a shareholder vote, which experts suggest will not pose any problem. Musk’s complete acquisition of Twitter comes after he became the company’s majority stakeholder a few weeks ago. With this, he has also taken over Twitter’s $25.5 billion debt and its repayment conditions.
A social media platform’s policies are good if the most extreme 10% on left and right are equally unhappy
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 19, 2022
In a statement confirming his purchase, Musk remarked, “Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated.” He also promised several reforms to the platform, including increased transparency regarding its algorithm to “increase trust” and eliminating “spambots.” He has also previously suggested that he would introduce an edit button.
Twitter CEO Parag Aggarwal, meanwhile, noted, “Twitter has a purpose and relevance that impacts the entire world.” However, during an employee meeting on Monday, Aggarwal remarked, “Once the deal closes, we don’t know which direction the platform will go.”
I hope that even my worst critics remain on Twitter, because that is what free speech means
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 25, 2022
According to the Washington Post, Twitter employees raised concerns over why Aggarwal “trusted” Musk or how the Tesla CEO “would be held accountable.” Twitter executives provided reassurances and underscored that the company’s operations will continue as usual for the next three to six months as the deal is finalised.
Twitter co-founder and former CEO Jack Dorsey called Musk the “singular solution” he trusts to solve the problem of Twitter “being a company.” In a series of tweets, he explained that he was unhappy with the platform being “owned by Wall Street and the ad model,” noting that Musk’s takeover of the company will be a departure from this. “Taking it back from Wall Street is the correct first step,” Dorsey added.
The White House said that President Joe Biden was ‘concerned’ about concentrated power when it comes to social media companies, following news that billionaire Elon Musk clinched a deal to buy Twitter for $44 billion https://t.co/v9geBCPCkR pic.twitter.com/DNjSE16eq7
— Reuters (@Reuters) April 26, 2022
Meanwhile, a number of conservative politicians hailed the move as a major victory for free speech. Republican congressman from Indiana Jim Banks said, “This is a huge win against the woke mob and haters of free speech,” urging Musk to immediately allow the posting of all “factually true and legal content.” Furthermore, Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor-Greene urged Musk to reinstate her personal account and the accounts of other suspended conservatives, including former President Donald Trump. Greene’s personal account on Twitter was permanently suspended for falsely spreading vaccine hesitancy and misleading information on COVID-19.
Despite having a much smaller userbase compared to other social media platforms such as the Meta-owned Facebook and Instagram, Twitter has played a central role in important global political events, such as the Arab Spring and the January 6 insurrection of the United States (US) Capitol building by right-wing extremists.
On Musk buying Twitter -- He insists he is pro-free speech, and yet says he will comply with local laws. You cannot have both.
— Dr. Audrey Truschke (@AudreyTruschke) April 26, 2022
The biggest threat to free speech on this platform is from right-wing governments who censor. Either you confront them, or you control speech for them.
In fact, the company’s response to Capitol Insurrection resulted in the permanent ban of then-US President Trump for violating the platform’s policies on incitement of violence. Trump, for his part, made it clear on Monday that he does not plan to join Twitter even if Musk makes the so-called free speech reforms. The former President is currently invested in building his own Twitter clone called Truth Social. “I want everybody to come over to TRUTH — conservatives, liberals, whatever,” he said during a discussion on the Musk-Twitter deal.
Musk’s purchase of Twitter with the agenda of free speech reforms has raised huge concern about the spread of hate speech and misinformation, which have in the past had direct and disastrous implications for communal harmony, public health initiatives, and public understanding of scientific facts and principles. In this respect, Musk’s acquisition of Twitter, no doubt, has policymakers across the globe worrying about its potential impact on national security. At the same time, it may generate questions about the relevance of and need for alternatives such as Truth Social, Parler, and Koo, which were ostensibly launched with the aim of promoting freedom of speech and combating Twitter’s perceived left bias.