Elon Musk will soon hold the keys to Twitter.
The business stated on Monday that it has accepted the Tesla CEO's $44 billion deal to take the company private. That means the world's wealthiest individual who has a flair for theatrics and unpredictable conduct is going to have the power to influence dialogue on a social network utilized by more than 200 million people every day.
How would Musk utilize such power?
Here are some concepts for Twitter that he's suggested.
Loosen up content limitations in the name of free speech
The Tesla and SpaceX CEO characterizes himself as a "free speech absolutist" and has attacked what he regards as excessive regulation on internet platforms.
He pointed to similar ideals in his statement announcing the acquisition by noting that "free expression is the backbone of a healthy democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where questions crucial to the survival of mankind are argued."
Musk has suggested that social networks should not delete remarks that, although offensive, are nevertheless lawful. During a recent interview at a TED conference, he added, "If it's a gray area, let the tweet live."
Twitter now outlaws harassment, abuse, and remarks that wish bodily harm to someone. The platform includes additional guardrails too, notably a restriction on misrepresentation connected to COVID-19.
Experts who study social networks concerned about Musk's desire to relax the boundaries of interaction on Twitter. They fear it might provide permission to harassers, trolls, and others who misuse the internet to attack individuals.
They also believe easing the limits on Twitter would enable individuals wanting to abuse the site by disseminating disinformation, or flat-out falsehoods, about political events, government leaders, and things pertaining to public health and safety.
Create an edit button so people may update their tweets
One of the most requested product upgrades among Twitter users is an edit button.
Unlike Facebook, Instagram, and other social media applications, it is not feasible to edit material on Twitter after it's published.
Musk has stated he favors allowing individuals edit what their tweets say, a notion that has caused a heated discussion among academics, journalists, and other major users of the network.
The worry among experts is that introducing an edit button option would be weaponized by bad actors, who may use it to cover up abuse or harassment as if it never occurred or to fool or manipulate others.
But some argue protections should be put in place so that tweets may be altered to clear up mistakes, while also giving a history of how the tweet was modified to preserve the original text.
Open expose Twitter's algorithm to the public
Musk has argued that the software that governs what people see and how far something travels on Twitter should be opened open. He favors posting Twitter's algorithm on GitHub, a site popular among programmers for sharing computer code.
While some supporters of increased transparency in social media businesses argue it may be a step toward more openness, others say disclosing Twitter's thick and intricate algorithm to the public will achieve very little.
A social network the size of Twitter processes billions of pieces of material every day. How and why tweets go viral, and how Twitter's recommendation system works, is so thick and sophisticated that the company's even software developers may get baffled trying to comprehend its logic.
Github - https://github.com/orgs/twitter/repositories
Source - Twitter
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