Though there were initial reports of Twitter being not interested in Elon’s offer in the beginning, eventually Twitter agreed to enter the partnership after he elaborated on his funding plans to Twitter. Elon Musk is known for his strange ways and insanely ambitious technological plans. So , it is obvious that him entering the social media space means that there will inevitably be some radical changes in how Twitter works. Elon Musk enjoys a Twitter following of 83 million people. He has more Twitter followers than the company’s co-founder Jack Dorsey as well as the CEO Parag Aggarwal. But he has never been the one to shy away from stirring up controversies or to mince his words. His tweets often land him in the eye of the storm because he expresses his thoughts explicitly via the platform. An example of one such controversy was when in 2018 the US Securities and Exchange Commission had sued him for allegedly violating the law. The legal trouble needed when Musk entered a settlement with the SEC that he will get some of his tweets pre-approved before posting them. Elon Musk, as expected, has some grand plans to bring about some changes in how Twitter works. Here are the four things that Elon Musk could change in Twitter.
Alterations in policies for content moderation :-
In the past Musk has often questioned if Twitter protects free speech. Twitter has been widely accused by many people and groups for censoring various voices. Musk conducted a twitter poll asking if Twitter rigorously adheres to the principle of free speech. Almost 2 minion people voted out of which 70% voted for no. Private companies like Twitter are free ro make their own rules because The First Amendment does not apply to them. Whether or not Elon is able to make any changes in how Twitter moderates content remains to be seen. As per Twitter they have no plans for reassessing any of their existing policies.
Curb the Cryptocurrency scams :—
One of the mass scale scams that has affected Tiwtter and Elon Musk himself personally are the cryptocurrency scams. Many fake accounts were made in the name of Musk and these scammers were asking people for cryptocurrency. In January this year, Musk also pointed fingers at Twitter by saying that it was wasting time on things like profile pictures instead of focusing on more important issues like combating crypto bots. He has tweeted that bots are ‘’single most annoying problem’’ on Twitter. He has sworn to authenticate all humans and to try and defeat all bots.
Introduce an edit button :-
Currently, Twitter doesn’t have the option to edit the tweets. Users have been demanding an edit button for many years now. But Twitter does not seem to be in any mood to introduce an edit button just yet. However, in the Twitter blue subscription plan, users can undo their tweets. Once again, when Musk conducted a poll, almost 4 millions votes were cast in which 3/4 supported the idea of an edit button. Although Twitter said that an edit button has been in the works since last year, it could potentially create problems. People could delete or alter their tweets to change the meaning. However, it seems that an edit button is in the works at Twitter.
Making the Twitter algorithm an open resource :-
All of us are slaves to algorithms. They are literally controlling our lives. Social media companies often keep tweaking their algorithms to ensure that users continue to be hooked to their platforms. Musk has suggested that the algorithm for twitter can be made readily available to users. That means it could be turned into an open source. Jack Dorsey also seems to be on his side. He has tweeted that, “The choice of which algorithm to use (or not) should be open to everyone. Musk has suggested that the platform should be more transparent and the users should be able to see if a post has been promoted or demoted on the website. Conclusion :- The future trajectory of Twitter has now become a point of great curiosity. Bret Taylor who is the chair of the company’s board has said that Musk’s entry into Twitter is the best path forward for Twitter’s stockholders.
