Elon Musk Buys Twitter

The world’s richest man, Elon Musk, closed a deal to obtain Twitter for $44 billion. The deal was finalized on Oct. 27 thus ushering in a new era on the social media app. The public wonders why Musk would buy the platform let alone show interest in doing so.

Musk views freedom of speech as one of the most important aspects of human interaction. When Musk first obtained Twitter, he began cleaning house on the app’s executive side of the business. Chief executive Parag Agrawal and Chief Financial Officer Ned Segal were the first to go under the Musk regime. In addition, half of Twitter’s public policy team was axed. Musk has called out the company’s management many times before due to content moderation.

With Twitter being a pool of all types of information, misinformation can be spread just as fast as the truth. Misinformation and policies that cover Covid-19 for example were ordered to be reviewed by the new executive team. Musk has stated before that he sees himself as a protector of free speech and wants information that’s shared to be accurate.

Musk has stated that there will be certain payments set in place on the app so that the company could make back the money lost. Paid direct messaging which lets users send private messages to high-profile users is an idea Musk and his team has put on the table. Certain videos would be “paywalled” which only gives access to users who paid a fee but one idea that has caught many people’s attention is the blue check decision.

            The blue check verification program will be implementing an $8 monthly fee for its service. In previous years, the blue check has been a free part of the platform. Priority in replies, mentions and search, which is essential to defeating spam/scams, the ability to post long videos & audio and half as many ads will be included in the monthly plan.

Musk and his team are bringing a whole new attitude when it comes to dealing with impersonators on the app. With the amount of information that is shared daily on the app, some people try to spread misinformation by using someone else’s name.

This method is to further Musk’s push for valid and trustworthy information. Musk’s commitment to Twitter is acceptable by many and disliked by many as well. While the future of the app isn’t fully set in stone yet, this purchase is just a seed planted for something even bigger.