Elon Musk Says He Would Reverse Donald Trump’s Twitter Ban

[cawacko]

I get it, if one doesn't like Trump you likely think it's great that Twitter banned him. But I really like Musk's viewpoint here in speaking about the results of that action that permanently banning him only emboldens his supporters and loses trust in the platform (as opposed to deleting or making invisible certain tweets, or a temporary suspension). Always a bigger picture at play.





Elon Musk Says He Would Reverse Donald Trump’s Twitter Ban

‘I think that was a mistake because it alienated a large part of the country,’ he says


Elon Musk said he would reverse Twitter Inc.’s TWTR -1.58%▼ ban on former President Donald Trump.

“I do think that it was not correct to ban Donald Trump. I think that was a mistake because it alienated a large part of the country, and did not ultimately result in Donald Trump not having a voice,” said Mr. Musk, who was speaking virtually at a the Financial Times Future of the Car summit.

Mr. Musk called the ban a “morally bad decision,” saying permanent bans undermine trust in Twitter.

“If there are tweets that are wrong and bad, those should be either deleted or made invisible, and a suspension—a temporary suspension—is appropriate, but not a permanent ban,” Mr. Musk said.

Mr. Musk agreed last month to buy Twitter in a $44 billion deal. He said Tuesday that the transaction wasn’t a done deal and that several steps, including a Twitter shareholder vote, still needed to be completed.

He said that banning Mr. Trump eventually would amplify the former president’s voice among those with right-wing political views. Mr. Trump has said he wasn’t planning to return to Twitter and was focused on his social-media venture called Truth Social.

Leading up to the storming of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 last year, Mr. Trump posted tweets that Twitter executives viewed as inciting violence. Twitter permanently banned Mr. Trump’s account on Jan. 8.

Representatives for Mr. Trump didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. A federal judge last week tossed a lawsuit filed by Mr. Trump against Twitter and its then-Chief Executive Jack Dorsey over alleged censorship. Twitter declined to comment.

Mr. Musk also said that Twitter suffers from a politically left-leaning bias and that the social-media company “needs to be much more evenhanded.” He partly linked those political leanings to Twitter being based in San Francisco.

Mr. Musk said it likely would take at least another two or three months before the Twitter deal closes.

The billionaire entrepreneur, who has likened Twitter to the public square and a forum for the exchange of ideas, reiterated his desire for several changes at the platform, including eliminating bots and scams. He also doubled down on plans for Twitter’s software code to be made open source so it can be widely viewed and people can recommend changes. “You really want transparency to build trust,” he said.

He has previously said he aimed to make Twitter less dependent on advertising, the platform’s principal source of revenue today.

Mr. Musk, who has described himself as a free speech absolutist, has said Twitter would comply with local laws governing content. This week he met with a top European Union official and said his plans for Twitter were aligned with the bloc’s new rules aimed at compelling social-media companies to do more to police illegal content, after his initial vision for the platform raised concerns among regulators in Europe.


https://www.wsj.com/articles/elon-mu...d=hp_lead_pos1

[cawacko]

Aside from the principled position Musk is taking there's this reality. "Mean tweets" is a catch phrase used by Trump supporters for his tweeting and basically all other actions. It can definitely be argued how he used Twitter turned people off and played a role in him losing the election. Since people think he may run again in 2024 why would opponents want to take away his use of a platform that helped cost him the election?

(this part is far less important but kind of interesting nonetheless)

[AProudLefty]

He had the account for 12 years.

[ExpressLane]

Elon knows pissing off half of your customers is a bad business model.

[ExpressLane]

Aside from the principled position Musk is taking there's this reality. "Mean tweets" is a catch phrase used by Trump supporters for his tweeting and basically all other actions. It can definitely be argued how he used Twitter turned people off and played a role in him losing the election. Since people think he may run again in 2024 why would opponents want to take away his use of a platform that helped cost him the election?

(this part is far less important but kind of interesting nonetheless)

Because his use of Twitter helped him win the 2016 election.

[AProudLefty]

Elon knows pissing off half of your customers is a bad business model.

Customers?

[BartenderElite]

I like it when Trump is on twitter. Let his insanity be out there every day.

Also, when people ask me to "name one lie he's told" (which always makes me laugh), I can just go to his latest tweet.

[archives]

Ultimately, who really cares, the people who read and take Trump tweets seriously are the same people who live in the Fox bubble, and if I am not mistaken he was largely taken off the platform for endless echoing the Big Lie, which everyone outside of that beforehand bubble know is a Big Lie

[Celticguy]

Customers?

how do you think Twitter pays the bills ?

[Celticguy]

whos to say whats "wrong or bad" ? Far to subjective.

Flash this up when you enter Twitter
"the opinions seen here are those of the poster and may or may not reflect the views of Twitter"

and leave everything alone.

[AProudLefty]

how do you think Twitter pays the bills ?

Ads?

[cawacko]

Ultimately, who really cares, the people who read and take Trump tweets seriously are the same people who live in the Fox bubble, and if I am not mistaken he was largely taken off the platform for endless echoing the Big Lie, which everyone outside of that beforehand bubble know is a Big Lie

Who really cares? Well, you have people claiming that if Musk buys Twitter and allows total free speech (like letting Trump back on) it will be the end of our Democracy. Whether you pay attention to Twitter or not is irrelevant (no disrespect). It plays a large role in our public discourse and has had a huge affect on how we communicate in this country.

It's interesting posting on a board so dominated by Boomers. It's not that Boomers don't use social media but you are at a very different point in your life and thus have a different relationship with social media than younger people. And therefore don't fully understand its affects.

[zymurgy]

Fuck Trump

blocking a news story that was true is a million times worse - nobody can defend that in a manner I would ever agree with

[Celticguy]

Ads?

and what is it that allows Twitter to coax money from companies that write them checks ?

you: twitterers (people that twit on Twitter)

so you need to make twitter attractive to cause twittering, thats attracting customers (cause those ads are directed to.....

[AProudLefty]

and what is it that allows Twitter to coax money from companies that write them checks ?

you: twitterers (people that twit on Twitter)

so you need to make twitter attractive to cause twittering, thats attracting customers (cause those ads are directed to.....

So the companies are the customers, not Twitters?

Thank you for confirming my point.