Tag: elon musk twitter takeover

The Timeline Of Elon Musk’s Twitter Takeover Downfall

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Home of celebrities and neo-nazis, Twitter has it all. With nearly 400 million users globally — half of them active — the social networking and micro-blogging platform remains the central spot for 280-character musings.

Known for its fandoms, spam bots, garbage discourse, and the tantalizing opportunity to respond directly to even the most famous of people, it’s now going to be known for Elon Musk’s desecration of it.

The multi-billionaire — ex-husband of Grimes — and purchaser of the title of “founder of Tesla” boasts 100 million+ Twitter followers, 20k+ tweets, and the title of CEO as of 2022.

Despite the goal of redefining Twitter as an innovation of grand proportions and as a “free speech” haven, Musk’s tyrannical management style may cause the platform to grind to a screeching halt any moment. Instead of a slow sinking ship, Musk crashed into the iceberg and then set off rocket launchers at the escaping boats.

Here’s a timeline of Musk’s acquisition and subsequent murder of Twitter:

Most recent news at the top — scroll down and read up for a full chronological timeline (this will be updated frequently)

November 18, 2022: Twitter in trouble

Teams responsible for Twitter’s basic functioning have been laid off or fled for the hills. Critics posit that the site could cease to exist any day now.

Musk closes all office sites — even after stating that all employees were required to work in the office, or resign.

November 16, 2022: Go hardcore or leave

Musk issues an ultimatum for the remaining Twitter staff to be “hardcore” and “exceptional” employees or leave. Effectively creating a cult-like environment for employees willing to work with such a toxic boss, his ultimatum draws criticism.

Hundreds of employees quit.

November 11, 2022: Blue checkmarks for all!

Ignoring Twitter’s Trust & Safety team, Musk rolls out the purchase of the blue verification checkmark.

The checkmark, which is also used on Instagram and TikTok, was originally a verification system to distinguish legitimate account holders — such as celebrities, publications, and organizations — from posers or parodies. However, Musk’s latest policy changes make it a status symbol, and a free for all when it comes to posing as brands or established entities.

November 4, 2022: Musk lays off half the company

Employees are alerted by being locked out of their computers.

November 3, 2022: Musk has beef with renowned horror writer, Stephen King

Musk announces his plan to charge $20 for the blue checkmark of verification. King tells him he’ll leave the platform, and Musk backtracks to $8.

⭐️ October 27, 2022: Musk buys Twitter

Musk becomes CEO for $44 billion and announces himself “Chief Twit.” He takes the company private, so it’s no longer listed with the New York Stock Exchange.

Musk’s number one priority is to make Twitter a haven for “free speech.” This will not end well for him.

October 3, 2022: Musk agrees to buy Twitter

During the Twitter vs. Musk trial, he was unable to prove that Twitter mislead him by misrepresenting the platform.

September 13, 2022: Twitter shareholders vote in favor of the Musk acquisition

Musk privately offers to purchase Twitter at a reduced price of $31 billion, but they reject his lower offer.

July 12, 2022: Twitter formally launches a lawsuit against Musk

Twitter requests that the trial be moved from September 19 – September 22, right before the deal’s “drop dead” date on October 24.

July 8, 2022: Musk threatens to terminate the contract

Citing that he’d been misled by Twitter’s bot numbers and security features, Musk threatens to terminate the contract, ensuring legal action.

May 13, 2022: The Deal’s on hold

According to Musk, the deal’s put on hold due to the high amount (5%) of spambots on Twitter. This announcement causes Twitter’s stock to plunge by 10%.

April 25, 2022: Twitter accepts

Because Musk’s offer is much higher than what Twitter is deemed worth and he has the cash, Twitter accepts, with caveats. If Mr. Musk wants to back out or disparages the company while the deal is closing, there’s a $1 billion termination fee.

⭐️ April 13, 2022: Musk offers to buy Twitter

He makes a $43 billion unsolicited bid to take Twitter private at $54.20 per share. The offer is 38% above the April 1 asking price. It was described as a “hostile takeover attempt.”

“I invested in Twitter as I believe in its potential to be the platform for free speech around the globe, and I believe free speech is a societal imperative for a functioning democracy.

However, since making my investment I now realize the company will neither thrive nor serve this societal imperative in its current form. Twitter needs to be transformed as a private company.

As a result, I am offering to buy 100% of Twitter for $54.20 per share in cash, a 54% premium over the day before I began investing in Twitter and a 38% premium over the day before my investment was publicly announced. My offer is my best and final offer and if it is not accepted, I would need to reconsider my position as a shareholder.

Twitter has extraordinary potential. I will unlock it.”

It’s rumored that the “420” in $54.20 is a reference to the cannabis slang for smoking daily at 4:20pm.

April 11, 2022: Musk rejects his spot on the Board

Joining the Board would have meant protecting the interests of Twitter, and therefore not criticizing the brand. There also would be a cap on his shares.

April 5, 2022: Musk is asked to join the Twitter Board

Musk’s announcement causes a major spike in Twitter’s stock prices — and a dip in Tesla stock prices. But Twitter invites him to join the board, even amidst concerns. Musk accepts the invite and extends an invite to Jack Dorsey, who declines.

April 4, 2022: Musk becomes Twitter’s largest shareholder

By investing $2.64 billion into Twitter’s stock over the course of the last few months, Musk gains 9.2% of shares, making him the largest shareholder.

January – March 2022: Musk shares his Twitter grievances

Musk’s tweets gain attention for his multiple complaints about the social media platform’s bot problem as well as its crypto scammers. He also placed a poll for his followers on whether or not Twitter’s code should be open-source — meaning available for anyone to view and rework themselves.

December 21, 2017: Musk shares his love for Twitter

Then-CEO Jack Dorsey replied, “Same.” A user suggested the multi-millionaire should buy Twitter and Musk replied, “How much is it?” So technically, this dumpster fire has been 5 years in the making.

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Allie Lembo

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November 18, 2022
‘Working remotely is ok if…’: Elon Musk clarifies on Work From Home policy at Twitter, Tesla, SpaceX

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Billionaire Elon Musk, on Sunday, said that his Twitter, Tesla and SpaceX staff can work from home if it is not logistically possible to come into the office.

Musk made this statement while responding to a message on the microblogging site Twitter from an Irish-based worker who said they had been told to return to the office from tomorrow.

The worker wrote, “As I’m sure you’re aware, Elon Musk has recently bought Twitter and is making harsh and drastic changes that are affecting hundreds of Irish employees’ lives. The most recent of these decisions is that all employees must be in the office by Monday. Many of us work all around this country and are unable to do so. This is in the middle of a housing crisis that Musk has absolutely no idea about, and it is almost impossible to move to Dublin so quickly. This is putting us under an intense amount of stress and uncertainty and unfortunately.”

He also said, “There is nothing we can do about it. One of the only things that Elon seems to react to is his own ego and the feeling of being unpopular on Twitter.”

Elon Musk, CEO of Twitter, Tesla and SpaceX, replied that he was not ordering people back into the office.

He tweeted, “This is false. Anyone who can be in office, should be. However, if not logistically possible or they have essential personal matters, then staying home is fine.”

The billionaire added that “Working remotely is also ok if their manager vouches for excellence. Same policy as Tesla & SpaceX.”

This is false. Anyone who can be in office, should be. However, if not logistically possible or they have essential personal matters, then staying home is fine.

Working remotely is also ok if their manager vouches for excellence.

Same policy as Tesla & SpaceX.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 12, 2022

Recently, Musk informed the staff, via an email, that he is ending the “work from home” regime permanently. In his letter to employees, Musk reportedly asked employees to brace for “difficult times ahead”.

Musk had previously eliminated “days of rest” from the calendars of Twitter employees. The “days of rest” are monthly days that employees can take to rest and recharge.

Musk reportedly asked the employees to work for 40 hours a week. He said that he would only let employees work remotely on a case-by-case basis.

Musk, who is not a huge fan of working from home, had also asked the Tesla employees to return to the office. He threatened employees with dire consequences if they failed to return to the office.

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November 13, 2022
US President Joe Biden accuses Twitter of ‘spewing lies’, slams Elon Musk

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US President Joe Biden slammed Elon Musk’s acquisition of Twitter Inc., accusing the social media platform of spreading lies.

Biden made the comments during a fundraiser in Chicago on Friday evening, warning donors about the impact of the November 8 midterm elections on the coming years.

Biden said, “Now what are we all worried about? Elon Musk goes out and buys an outfit that sends and spews lies all across the world.”

“There’s no editors anymore. How do we expect kids to be able to understand what is at stake?” added Biden.

Musk, who bills himself as a champion of free speech, paid $44 billion for Twitter. He has fired most of the company’s top executives and board members, and has quickly implemented a plan to lay off roughly half of its 7,500 employees.

Civil rights organisations are also increasing their pressure on advertisers to ensure Musk takes steps to prevent the platform from being used to spread hate speech or disinformation.

Musk acknowledged on Friday that concerns about Twitter content moderation had resulted in a “massive drop in revenue,” but claimed that “nothing has changed with content moderation.”

Musk has been looking for ways to reduce expenses and profit from the platform in various ways. One of his ideas is to charge users a monthly subscription fee to be verified on the platform.

Additionally, he suggested that users who paid the $8 monthly fee would have their Tweets prioritised in replies, mentions, and searches. This proposal drew criticism from some users on Twitter who claimed that he was establishing a two-tier system that would favour those who were willing to pay.

Twitter employees had filed a class action lawsuit alleging that the company was violating federal and Californian law by making significant job cuts without providing 60 days’ notice.

Also Read: Twitter India employees get emotional and nostalgic, bid their ‘Final Goodbyes’

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November 4, 2022
Elon Musk’s big challenge after buying Twitter: Setting free speech threshold

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US-based microblogging site Twitter’s new owner, the self-described “free speech absolutist” Elon Musk’s first move after gaining the leadership position of the social media platform was to fire the company’s top executives. Musk’s this decision speaks volumes about his ownership and his plans for the social media platform’s future.

He fired the company’s chief executive officer Parag Agrawal, chief financial officer Ned Segal, and chief legal officer Vijaya Gadde. He had accused them of misleading Twitter investors over the number of fake accounts on the platform.

Later, the billionaire also posted a conciliatory note to wary advertisers, assuring them he won’t allow Twitter to devolve into a “free-for-all hellscape.”

Musk said that he had bought Twitter in a bid to ‘help humanity’ amid the “great danger that social media will splinter into far right wing and far left wing echo chambers that generate more hate and divide our society.”

Musk also plans to scrap permanent bans on users, Bloomberg said, citing a person familiar with the matter. Musk has indicated he sees Twitter as a foundation for creating a “super app” that offers everything from money transfers to shopping and ride-hailing.

However, the problem is that not even the world’s richest man can have it both ways.

Sites such as Gab and Parler, which have lightly moderated “free speech”, serve as cautionary tales of what can happen when the guardrails are lowered. These small sites are popular with libertarians and conservatives fed-up with what they see as censorship of their perception on platforms like Facebook. Moreover, such sites also reported to be full of trolls and other derogatory content.

This makes advertisers stop promoting their products next to disturbing, racist and hateful posts. Many don’t want to spend time on online sites filled with racist and sexist trolls.

US-based automaker General Motors, on Friday, announced that it would pause advertising on Twitter while it figures out the direction of the platform under Musk.

However, according to Lou Paskalis, former head of media for Bank of America, Twitter’s most loyal advertisers, which consists of many Fortune 100 companies, still believe in the platform and aren’t likely to leave unless “some really untoward things” happen.

Moreover, European regulators also reiterated that under Musk’s leadership Twitter must still abide by the region’s Digital Services Act. It should be noted that European Union levies hefty fines on firms if they don’t control illegal content on their platform.

“In Europe, the bird will fly by our EU rules,” EU industry chief Thierry Breton tweeted. European Parliament lawmaker and civil rights proponent Patrick Breyer suggested people look for alternatives where privacy is a priority.

“Twitter already knows our personalities dangerously well due to its pervasive surveillance of our every click. Now this knowledge will be falling into Musk’s hands.”

Currently, Twitter is struggling to engage its most active users who are vital to its business. These “heavy tweeters” account for less than 10 per cent of monthly overall users but still generate around 90 per cent of all tweets and half of the company’s global revenue.

Another task for Musk will be to deliver on his promise to clean up the fake profiles, or “spam bots” that have preoccupied him. This also matters because advertisers, the company’s major stream of revenue, want to know how many real users they are reaching when they buy ads.

(With input from agencies)

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October 29, 2022