The arrival of Elon Musk on Twitter has been preceded by controversy as soon as the buyer assumed that the promised price was absolutely exorbitant and was immediately followed by massive dismissals and the announcement of the charge for certain services such as account verification, which has entered into crisis after a barrage of false profiles once Once the authentication has become an asset to acquire and not a guarantee of solvency. But not only the blue bird company faces serious economic problems. Goal, owner of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, has also announced a drastic reduction in staff. Services that have had a radically disruptive effect on the traditional communication ecosystem have seen how its economic viability is compromised when an economic crisis weighs on the advertising market and how the arrival of new players, such as tiktokcan mean that from day to night they come to be seen more as the past than the future, vulnerable to changing tastes and reputational crises, as evidenced by the cancellation of users and advertisers registered on Twitter since the irruption of Twitter was announced. its new owner.
The moment is compromised for the economy of the large social networks, it is also for other players in the field of virtual entertainment, such as Netflix; of online commerce, such as amazonor the technology sector in general, from Microsoft and Google to Tesla or Nvidia. All Big Tech execute, prepare or weigh layoffs, fall significantly in the stock market and see their income statements damaged. A result of the global crisis fueled by the war in Ukraine that reproduces what other economic sectors are experiencing (or anticipates what they will experience).
However, beyond the impact of the general economic context, some companies are also experiencing crises typical of their model, forced to reinvent themselves as others had to do upon arrival. And his answers, like the metaverse of mark zuckerberg, in some cases they seem more like a way to inflate a bubble without content. No less worrying are Elon Musk’s plans for Twitter, shouting “the bird is released.” Twitter is not a business like any other. It is a network directly connected with freedom of expression and the right to information, and, consequently, with the functioning of our democracies. The networks have become a new public square where citizens talk and debate about those issues that interest them most, as well as having fun and learning. What should be any means of communication. Twitter still occupies a privileged position, and in that sense what Musk does or does not do with his new acquisition is not at all innocuous.
That is why it is somewhat disturbing to try to discover what the mega-millionaire means when he defines himself as a “free speech absolutist.” Apparently the South African entrepreneur adheres to the tendency, so frequented by Internet magnates, such as Mark Zuckerberg, of trying by all means disclaim any responsibility for the content that circulate through the networks. Thus, the brand new owner of Twitter has pointed out that, for him, the limit of freedom of expression is the law, and that if someone wants to reduce that freedom, what they should do is go to the Government to do so. All the insufficient efforts made so far on moderating the hate speech and bullying they would thus be compromised.
The president of the USA, Joe Biden, has warned Musk about it. By now, he should have realized that the matter is not easy at all, but very complex. The limit between what is admissible and what is inadmissible is difficult to establish, and always controversial. Twitter is freedom, exchange and personal learning and, at the same time, a place where lies and hate thrive. It is soon to be alarmed. Although we do have to be vigilant.