HedgewinNov 9, 2022
Justin Hendrix
I just listened to Elon Musk on a Twitter Space that was intended for advertising partners. This is what he said at the outset. It's hard to come to any other conclusion that he has little understanding of human communication, or indeed behavior on the platform he owns. https://twitter.com/i/spaces/1RDGlabMNOgJL?s=20
Play recording: Elon Q&A: Advertising & the Future

Robin Wheeler ’s Space · Where live audio conversations happen

Twitter
Nov 9, 2022 at 7:23pmWeb
Show threadmyownpetard blue checkmarkNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix y'know that theory of mind thing? he doesn't have it. elon is the only real boy!
Show threadTC Won't Give In To LiesNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix
Not only that. Musk struggles with the idea of objective truth - saying it’s “nebulous”
Show threadBarbaraKB in MichiganNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix honestly, sounds similar to stuff @[email protected] would say at times. issue? Jack knew it was just talk and then assigned reality to others. Elon hasn’t done that… yet.
Show threadWonkyNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix "good". He's not big on capabilities is he?
Show threadirwinNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix "As I've said in some of my tweets..." 😂
Show threadStop-the-MAGAss-ReichNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix I get the vibe that he thinks humans are black box appliances.
Show threadProtectDemocracyEverywhereNov 9, 2022
@lumiere2016 @justinhendrix he also doesn’t seem to recognize his own hostile way of being in the world. He makes it sound like he’s running something in a really nice way, like a humanitarian 😂
Show threadNatanael ⚠️Nov 10, 2022
@crutherford @lumiere2016 @justinhendrix "but don't you want more speech" - unironically from elon
Show threadChristopher EldridgeNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix the disconnect between some of his words and his actions is stupifying
Show threads2Nov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix naive at the minimum. delusional on the surface, human communication is messy at the best of times IRL
Show threadPicard's Little Teacup Nov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix he really just doesn't understand that discourse and debate usually hardens people's original opinions. If you want to change people's minds you need to have them experience something different. That's why stories are so effective
Show threadShanti's Hellbound HeartNov 9, 2022
@picardsteacup @justinhendrix and one on one human interaction, it's a lot more difficult to point at that group of people you've been monstering or being told to when you've actually met a few, had a good faith chat and realised that they're people, just like you.
Messy, complicated and individual, not a hive mind of whatever negative trait has been assigned to them.
Show threadTae KimNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix This sounds a lot like mastodon
Show threadGoappstateNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix I think he’s good at communicating a bold vision people can broadly support (e.g. like with Tesla, sustainably and CO2). He clearly doesn’t accept that to achieve the vision, he’ll need to alter his own behavior on Twitter.
Show threadKwanza Osajyefo Nov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix “Now excuse me while I post memes featuring Nazi soldiers.”
Show threadSCG CroweNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix the lack of self-awareness on Musk’s part is stunning.
Show threadGraham LesterNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix It seems that the idealistic Elon Musk who is speaking has no relationship with the Elon Musk who is destroying Twitter and dragging it kicking and screaming away from Truth in all its forms.
Show threadZorro Notorious MEBNov 9, 2022

@justinhendrix That's not a lot different from the vision speeches I heard at the Chirp conference in 2010 from Biz Stone, Ev Williams and Dick Costolo.

At the time, Twitter was transitioning from a nerds / bloggers plaything to a strong number two in the emerging social media marketing industry segment.

I don't like Musk's politics, I don't like Musk's autocratic / Machiavellian corporate governance style and I don't like his public persona, but that vision's not a new one.

Show threadjeSuisatire neindochohh ᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷNov 9, 2022

@justinhendrix

just don't waste mine by making me read a text, some truth.social bot could have written.
thx

(that said, 👍 for the info)

Show threaddowninfrontplsNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix I don't like him much but he seems to have an idealistic viewpoint in that statement anyway. He's certainly in denial of how people are currently using the site and his own behaviour is entirely contradictory.
Show threadIron MarkNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix this from the man who claims to be searching for truth, but keeps enabling the liars. a lie isn't another point of view if it contains no facts, its just a lie. and we shouldn't be debating that.
Show threadBernard TyersNov 9, 2022

@justinhendrix

In summary: he wants more "truthiness".

Show threadPeter MNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix
Makes me think of All Along the Watchtower, any version, but especially U2's, with the lyric, "All I want is a red guitar, three chords and the truth".
https://youtu.be/O2Fu8kSlmTw
U2 - All along the watchtower (CD version)

YouTube
Show threadnadin brzezinskiNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix @TanjaMcConnor not a defense, but an important context…why I keep making references to Howard Hughes https://www.axios.com/2022/04/15/elon-musk-aspergers-syndrome
Elon Musk opens up on how Asperger's has impacted his life

There are relatively few known examples of successful entrepreneurs and business leaders with Asperger’s.

Axios
Show threadKelly FinchamNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix why am I surprised that he used these words in this order - truth is a nebulous concept? 😲
Show threadJChristensenANov 9, 2022

@justinhendrix

It's his schtick to say that the purpose of his company is to "better humanity" in some form or another. It gives him an excuse when he takes radical actions that backfire horribly. He also uses it like a whip to drive his employees beyond reasonable work efforts because, "humanity"!

Show threadJeremy KahnNov 9, 2022

@justinhendrix dude is running the company mission like a weed-heavy sophomore-year late night BS session

... Only those usually involve more than one person

Show threadSunitaNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix If you substitute "space travel" for Twitter and "space" for Truth then it's basically a SpaceX pitch. Maybe he only has one mental model.
Show threadKana KawaseNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix Including his own behaviour on the platform he owns.
Show threadCraig GrannellNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix If he wants truth, eradicating validation under the name of blue ticks being the ‘great equaliser’ seems an odd decision. (Occam’s razor: He doesn’t want truth.)
Show threadConjectural TechNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix I think his pursuit of the truth is as ready for the world as full self driving.
Show threadMatt RodierNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix One of his closest advisors at Twitter, David Sacks, started a network of podcasts where the common thread is the furtherance of Russian propaganda. Not sure how as a company they pursue objective truth under current leadership.
Show threadSabrinaDentNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix So CW on Elon content would be cool. I enjoy this brief respite of pretending he doesn't exist.
Show threadRuby S.Nov 9, 2022

@justinhendrix It's like he doesn't even know what Twitter is!

And I find this oddly comforting because users and advertisers will continue to flee, and the sooner he fails the sooner someone who isn't a sociopath can take control.

Show threadSteve Geee 🤘Nov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix there's a level of naiveté in this that I honestly did not expect.
Show threadRichard JacobNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix
He lost me with “Truth can be a nebulous concept”…😑
Show threadpppioeNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix
I posted about my daughter's observations of that same call earlier.
Show threadKateNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix screams "me,me, me!"
Show threadLisa SadlerNov 9, 2022

@justinhendrix

Just from his behavior since he purchased Twitter contradicts what he says about envisioning a platform of world peace sprinkled with rainbows and lollipops. If anything he’s becoming a security risk.

Show threadMike MattatallNov 9, 2022
@justinhendrix Only liars want people to believe that truth is a "nebulous concept."
Show threadCoach Pāṇini ®Nov 10, 2022
@justinhendrix the owner of Napster is like, “can we just rock ‘n roll?” after the RIAA bricks any computer which downloaded a Metallica song
Show threadMichael Downey 🧢Nov 10, 2022
@OCRbot eng
Show threadOCR BotNov 10, 2022
@downey
“We really want to be the digital town square that is inclusive as
possible. Can we get 80% of humanity on Twitter, talking, ideally in a
positive way. Can we exchange, instead of having violence, have
words, and maybe once in a while people change their minds. The
overarching goal here is how do we make Twitter a force for good for
civilization. We'll just keep changing and adapting until that is the
outcome achieved. People should look back on Twitter, consider
Twitter to be a good thing in the world. Like I said, something that
furthers civilization, that you are glad it exists. And I’ve said in some
of my tweets, we want to just be in vigorous pursuit of the truth, to
be somewhat in the business of truth. Now truth can be a somewhat
nebulous concept, but we can aspire towards it. And I think even if
we can’t get there completely, at least trying our hardest to get there
is a worthwhile endeavor.”
Show threadDaphneNov 10, 2022
@justinhendrix it's moronic drivel.
Show threadRick KlauNov 10, 2022
@justinhendrix you could tell me this was just GPT-3 trained on all past utterances of Twitter CEOs and I'd believe you
Show threadMaxim WeinsteinNov 10, 2022
@justinhendrix And yet, while we roll our eyes and critique him, advertisers are hearing what they want to hear and will be back with their $ in tow.
Show threadChuck GroundhogNov 10, 2022
@[email protected] there’s nothing he says here that is controversial. However, actions speak louder than words. I left Twitter because he was spreading a conspiracy theory about Nancy Pelosi’s husband, 2 days after he had been viciously assaulted. Elon purposely spreads lies and conspiracy theories because he likes the attention. He doesn’t spread truth.
Show threadPhil ReesNov 10, 2022

@justinhendrix He knows what he's doing. He's doing Pravda.

https://gizmodo.com/elon-musks-pravda-media-company-already-exists-1826271755

Elon Musk's 'Pravda' Media Company Already Exists

Following critical coverage of his electric car company, Tesla, Elon Musk has been on a Twitter tear against the media, threatening to build a service that would allow the general public to rank the trustworthiness and “core truth” of stories, journalists, publications, and editors.

Gizmodo
Show threadDudadius :: Bryan RheudeNov 10, 2022
@justinhendrix nice words…then tweets conspiracies and nazi memes.
Show threadColetteNov 10, 2022
@dudadius @justinhendrix and tells the Twitterverse this is the year to vote Republican.
Show threadMurphysicalNov 10, 2022

@justinhendrix

Dude posts Paul Pelosi conspiracies and thinks Twitter can be a source for truth?

Elon is in so far over his head while ignoring those that tell him he's an idiot.

Show threadCarolineCherryNov 10, 2022
@Murphysical @justinhendrix It’s as if he is so protected by his wealth that he has never had to adapt his views.It’s staggering it is as if he believes that there is only one ‘truth’.
Show threadDieuNov 10, 2022
@justinhendrix so he spent $44bn on a hellsite equipped with no other plan than the naive ideals of an inexperienced and moderately talented elementary school teacher?
Show threadNoFascismNov 10, 2022
@justinhendrix gibberish.
Show threadwobweger Nov 13, 2022
@justinhendrix who raised that guy?