Philip Bump

It’s not complicated: Elon can do whatever he wants with Twitter, just as Twitter could do what it wanted pre-Elon.

Then, Twitter wanted to build a space aimed at inclusivity and avoided disinformation. Musk wants to build something different. https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/12/16/elon-musk-twitter-trump/?itid=ap_philipbump

The debate over speech on Twitter is as uncomplicated as it is unhinged

Sure, Elon Musk can do what he wants. That was always the case. The issue is what business he's building — and how it fits into political narratives.

The Washington Post
Dec 17, 2022 at 2:37pmWeb
Show threadActuallyTechnicallyDec 17, 2022
@pbump yeah like a safe space for the klan and klan-like sycophants. That's fine though. I've had enough with that hellsite.
Show threadcrugeleyDec 17, 2022
@pbump That is right, it is his space to do with as he wants. Every individual, advertiser, and business (including yours), must decide if they want to be part of that.
Show threadTrading Places ResearchDec 17, 2022

@pbump Hi Phil! Where’s washingtonpost.social?

Read the writing on the wall. Y’all need to take control of your social media.

Show threadKayBayDec 17, 2022
@TradingPlacesResearch @pbump I’m hoping to find major news publications and corporations here on Mastodon- most of the journalists are here and that’s good. I just can’t go on Twitter anymore.
Show threadStormcrowDec 17, 2022
@pbump Elon wants a 4chan style cesspit that periodically spins off a mass shooter or attack on the Capitol.
Show threadLynnBrennerDec 17, 2022

@pbump A wonderful column! 👏 👍

This is a lucid and accurate summary of Twitter's pre- and post-Musk history for those who haven't followed it as obsessively as most reporters, and a simple, elegant explanation of what has and hasn't changed about Twitter.

Show threadPatty KimuraDec 17, 2022
@pbump Musk wants to build a profitable Fox News / Newsmax model public square for that demographic slice to meet and repropagandize each other. Where the fun angle is, is mainstream journos can get slammed, doxxed, dunked, threatened in person by Musk Media loyal viewers and watch the Big Man suspend and bully, too. And advertisers can pay Musk for the WWE type action. You journos are the chihuahuas in the dog pit.
Show threadJillZDec 17, 2022
@pbump “This isn’t a First Amendment issue, since Twitter is not the government.”
thanks for sharing this.
Show threadDiver84Dec 17, 2022
@pbump Pure truth!
Show threadMortimer Peabody Aloysious IIIDec 17, 2022
@pbump it's the natural progression when the platform is over run by Alt-right, and neo-con fascists. First step is to alienate the core user base. Second step is to amplify sensational and controversial posts. Third step is the user interaction gets so toxic that anyone outside the echo chamber bails in a mass exodus. We are about to enter Step 2 via neo-Twitter Blue. Elon was hailed as a savior for the platform, but he is hastening its downfall.
Show threadJorge A. PiedrahitaDec 17, 2022
@pbump
We should avoid billionaires that want to rule our life like Elon “free speech” Musk, now turned buffoon and Tweeter tyrant in chief!
Show threadPeter BokulichDec 17, 2022

@pbump,
“It’s not complicated: Elon can do whatever he wants with Twitter.”

It’s only simple if you ignore the different ways someone “can” do something.

Legally? Of course. No one is suggesting the 1st Amendment applies.

Morally? “Can” he do whatever he wants without violating any moral principles? Well, now the answer *is* complicated. The answer is almost certainly no.

Politically? Without consequences for his businesses? That’s complicated too, isn’t it?

Show threadBenjamin JohnsDec 17, 2022
@pbump You're not wrong of course, but it is wild that there's a consent decree on the company and the consensus is "well, of course, in practice Musk is free to ignore that and face no real consequences to any of his actions because, frankly, he's rich and the worst conceivable thing that could happen is a mild fine after a interminably long lawsuit."
Show threadPeter BokulichDec 17, 2022

@Theoreticalb @pbump

Exactly. Elon “can” break the law, because he’s rich enough to get away with it.

Journalists like Bump should think more carefully about what they’re saying someone “can” do.

Show threadJoelDec 17, 2022
@pbump so… here’s a solution. Leave. Post here. Post on Post. Only reason to stay on twitter is to observe it being burned to the ground. Stop engaging there. Stop tweeting. Watch it shrivel and die or become what truth social was intended to be.
Show threadNormanDec 17, 2022
@pbump The only thing that I'm gonna get pissed over is trying to keep people trapped on Twiter by blocking Mastodon instances.
Show threadAlexander RutholDec 17, 2022

@pbump
He wants to turn twitter into /pol/.

He loves /pol/, surely everyone will.

Show threadPaul Stewart IIDec 17, 2022
@pbump Musk is the inverse of the former Twitter universe
Show threadParker BenchleyDec 17, 2022
@pbump The part that amazes me (well, not so much) is all of those conservative people, complaining for years about how they were censored and stripped of their “freedom of speech,” all of a sudden seen to understand that Twitter is a private company that can moderate as they choose, and now those folks have no problem with it. 🤔 🙄 🤷‍♂️
Show threaddecodeVeronikaDec 18, 2022
@pbump exactly, it’s not a rocket science 🤭
Show threadJohn RefiorDec 19, 2022
@pbump at least before it was accountable to the SEC and shareholders and laws governing publicly traded companies
#Twitter
Show threadRobb MontgomeryJan 10, 2023
@pbump
Sure. And there are consequences to these actions.
Let's start with the big ones like regulation.
His appears to be in direct violation of EU laws in multiple areas.
Employment, data, privacy, and hate speech.
That is the space to watch because EU is a huge market, and the EU laws have real teeth and officials are not afraid to use them.