We’re going to be talking about one of the biggest messes on the News today. No, I’m not referring to the current Political Landscape.
The topic is the Social Media Company, called Twitter, a company that specializes in microblogging and social networking. Since its debut in 2006, the company has handled an average of 1.6 billion search queries a day and had more than 330 Million Monthly Active Users. Then we move into April 2022, the worst month for both the company and for people that use it, Elon Musk bought 9.1% of Twitter for $2.64 Billion.
For those who aren’t familiar with Musk, he is a Business Magnate and Investor, Chief Engineer, and CEO of SpaceX, CEO and product architect of Tesla Inc, Founder of the Boring Company, Co-Founder of OpenAI, and Neuralink. Elon is now the Owner and CEO of Twitter Inc. Goes without saying he has accomplished a lot and has a brilliant mind, but he can also be very chaotic at times.
I say this not out of disrespect. But, as an observation from a person who has used the Social Networking platform for twelve years, you can tell a lot about a man’s character from the company he keeps and how he presents himself to society and the world. The way he has presented himself to his new company and his employees has been monstrous and out of line for somebody with his status and the expectations he carries. According to a new article from the New York Times, one from reporters who have interviewed thirty-six people who are either at or close to Twitter has described the handling of the new company as a disaster, keep in mind, that’s the opinion of this writer.
On October 28th, hours after completing the $44 Billion Buyout, Elon would gather several HR executives in what was described as a “war room” at the San Francisco Corporate Office. He would tell them about his new plan for Twitter’s workforce to be slashed immediately. It would also mention that the workers that were let go would not receive their bonuses, set to be paid on November 1st. The Executives warned him that his new plan would violate not only employment laws, breach contracts with workers, and would lead to lawsuits. But did this matter to the new boss? Not in the slightest, because he was used to being taken to court and paying penalties. He wasn’t worried at all about the risks.
He would change his tune two days later after learning how costly the potential fines and lawsuits could be. It would also cause delays to pile up as managers were trying to figure out which employees to let go, so Musk decided to wait on cutting jobs until after November 1st. As you would expect, this threw Twitter into mass chaos even more with the immediate layoffs coming, the 51 Year Old would barrel in with ideas on how the service should operate, but it didn’t offer any way to execute them. Even offering a way to the business, legal and financial complexities of running a platform that has been called a global town square.
As you would expect, Twitter was an absolute mess both in the office and online. The Social Networking Company was facing tremendous pressure due to debt, which included fifty percent of its workforce being slashed. And to make things worse, he let the company know that the outlook looked grim, and it could file for Bankruptcy next year.
You would think the chaos would wind down after a week or two. No, it managed to be taken to the next level with the Midterm Elections. Misinformation would continue to spread like wildfire, and the advertisers were beginning to pull out after witnessing what a prominent company looks like when it is not being handled properly.
Other problems that have come up have been racism, fake news, and even more fake accounts that have become noticeable, even causing mayhem for businesses. It was so bad that Twitter would have to pause its new eight-dollar subscription program after trolls began to pose as celebrities and businesses. Did this affect Musk? It gave him a headache. Now, if you decided to parody the “Chief Twit” as Kathy Griffin did, you’ll be suspended immediately.
Since his takeover, more staff is getting laid off, and now he is feuding with a Senator. His name is Ed Markey, a Democrat Senator from Massachusetts, and this senator sits on the Subcommittee on Communication, Media, and Broadband; the Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety, and Data Security, something that could regulatory provide oversight on many of Elon’s businesses such as Tesla, Space X, and Twitter.
Now, I would like to point out before going any further that while Musk has been tweeting through all of this, even joking about it in replies about the situation with right-wing influencers and his fan base. There were plenty of people that suggested that it wouldn’t be wise for him to provoke a senator, but here we are. It wasn’t his first feud with a Senator, nor it would be the last. The CEO assumed that Senator Markey would abuse his political power to attack him, which he didn’t.
The Senator is referring to a 2011 Federal Trade Commission (FTC) requirement that Twitter does not establish policies or features that misrepresent“the extent to which it maintains and protects the security, privacy, confidentiality, or integrity of any nonpublic consumer information.” Twitter has previously paid a $150 million fine for violating the FTC consent decree.
Speaking of the FTC, there was a statement issued last week. The spokesperson said that they were “keeping track of the recent developments at Twitter with deep concern. No CEO or company is above the law, and companies must follow our consent decrees.”
The Senator even referenced the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) ongoing investigation into Tesla regarding rising car crashes that have occurred with drivers engaging in the vehicle’s Autopilot feature.
Over the weekend, Twitter lost more workers, having to sell more stock, and then Musk publicly punished two of his software engineers by firing them after they called the new owner out. Elon claims to be a “Free Speech Absolutist” unless you criticize him or his policies. He spoke at the G20 Forum, discussing not only Tesla but also Twitter, vowing to ease restrictions on what users can say on the platform. To be honest, from what has happened with the parody accounts and the problem with misinformation and bigoted posts happening currently, other problems need to be addressed and taken care of first.
I have brought you everything that was mentioned about the main talking points that have been covered and discussed since yesterday, which include links that provide more in-depth information on Twitter. Thank you for taking the time to read this and I look forward to reading your response.
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