Elon Musk may have become most followed on Twitter, but there are promises yet to be delivered
3 min read 31 Mar 2023, 10:21 PM ISTOn a day Chief Twit Elon Musk crossed former US President Barack Obama to become the most followed person on Twitter, let's take a look at Elon Musk's failed promises for the micro blogging platform
PremiumTwitter Chief Twit Elon Musk might have taken over the micro blogging platform in October last year completing a $44 billion bid, however, the changes and promises made since his takeover bid began in April last year form a day's narrative.
Layoffs that saw half the company's workforce leave, while several policy changes creates a slew of frustrated users. Subscription plan in place of legacy verification system seemed to take away all credibility Twitter stood for.
Promises made by Elon Musk since his takeover spanned from his present and previous employees, to his users and ways in which he would govern the platform.
On the day Musk crossed former US President Barack Obama to become the most followed person on Twitter, let's take a look at Elon Musk's failed promises for the micro blogging platform
Decision to Step Down as Chief Twit
Elon Musk had promised to step down in December 2022, if Twitter users voted for him to quit being the head of Twitter. Musk had said he would ‘abide by the results’ of the poll. Users voted Musk out, but he did not quit.
Decision will be made by polls
Elon Musk had promised his users that all policy change decision would be made via polling. This was decided after he drew backlash for banning links to other social media platforms, he vowed, “Going forward, there will be a vote for major policy changes. My apologies. Won’t happen again." Since then, he has implemented a host of policy changes without soliciting feedback from users.
The chaotic notion of Free Speech
Elon Musk's Twitter is the quintessential example of the debate around Free Speech. The self-appointed harbinger of free speech platform brazenly censored posts, banned journalists and then restored their accounts asking them to delete Tweets Elon Musk did not like, and removed content from the BBC after India’s government demanded it.
While Musk played god for content on his platform, Twitter users resorted to cyber bullying, increased hate speech thereby threatening the safer space that Twitter was under Jack Dorsey
Digital town Square
When Musk purchased Twitter he declared the platform a “digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated." But this week he announced that non-paying users won’t even be able to vote on the site and will have their voices minimized. Musk also said that he will only promote the tweets of users who pay him.
Blue Tick - legacy and subscription
Musk said that as Twitter owner he would work on “authenticating all humans" on the platform. But Musk has moved to do the opposite by stripping notable public figures who refuse to pay him of their verification badges, while also simultaneously verifying users who are impersonating others.
Open Source algorithm
Elon Musk had promised that he would open source Twitter's algorithm. this was his USP during his takeover bid. However, open source now seems like a distant dream, owing to several postponed dates. On 21 February, he said it would happen “next week." It has still yet to occur. Musk now claims it will happen on 31 March.
Moderation Council
When Musk took over as Twitter owner, he said that he would appoint a content moderation council that would advise on all such decisions. The council was never appointed and Musk later indicated he would not actually create such a body.
No sight of the promised Shadow Ban feature
Elon Musk promised in December that he would release a feature showing users whether they have been “shadowbanned." Months have gone by with no such feature available.
Severance Pay to laid off employees
Elon Musk boasted about offering laid off employees three months of severance, which he said was more than what was legally required of the company. Months after being let go, many employees were only offered one month of pay in exchange for agreeing to various terms and conditions.
