Like most of us, actor James Woods is “looking forward” to Elon Musk “making significant improvements to Twitter” now that he not only owns majority shares in the company but also sits on the board.
Woods tweeted, “Dear @elonmusk, welcome to Twitter. I join millions of users in hoping your presence will restore integrity to this once valuable forum. Two thoughts: Remove all politically motivated algorithms from the site. Make people have to use their real identities to end abuse.”
Dear @elonmusk, welcome to Twitter. I join millions of users in hoping your presence will restore integrity to this once valuable forum.
Two thoughts:
Remove all politically motivated algorithms from the site.
Make people have to use their real identities to end abuse.
— James Woods (@RealJamesWoods) April 5, 2022
Before you think it’s a hostile takeover remember that Twitter is a greedy monster that is more than happy to have the wealthy musk at its table. In fact, they’ve gushed over his buy-in. Sure, there were some clowns who quit once Musk arrived, but the higher-ups aren’t total morons.
Twitter’s stock has gained 35% since Musk revealed that he has taken a stake in the social media company, adding $980 million to Musk’s fortune. The Tesla leader frequently takes to Twitter to communicate with his 80 million followers, sometimes getting him into trouble. A series of off-the-cuff tweets about taking Tesla private back in 2018 led U.S. securities regulators to appoint a Twitter babysitter for Musk, who must review anything the CEO posts about his company.
Musk is expected to push Twitter on issues of free speech, a topic on which he’s been outspoken. Twitter is among several social media platforms trying to strike a balance between free expression and censoring content deemed hateful, harmful, or false.
Last month, Musk openly mulled starting his own social media platform. “Given that Twitter serves as the de facto public town square, failing to adhere to free speech principles fundamentally undermines democracy. What should be done?” he said.
It’s all good news for free speech, of which, Musk is an outspoken champion of.