Twitter Sale to Elon Musk Sparks Heated Reactions, From ‘It’s Been Fun’ to ‘Let’s See What You Can Do’
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Elon Musk set the internet ablaze Monday when he gained ownership of Twitter for $44 billion. The saga began little over a week ago, when Musk bought a 9.2% stake in the social media giant and offered to buy it for $43 billion shortly after. The hostile takeover bid raised questions about what could happen if Twitter’s board accepted or declined, and what it would look like if the Tesla and SpaceX CEO took the company private.
Monday’s afternoon’s announcement answered some of those questions and raised others as people took to Twitter (where else?) to share their reactions to the news.
Hashtags like #RIPTwitter, #twittersold and #GoodbyeTwitter surged as users from Hollywood and beyons lamented the purchase of one of the world’s largest social media platforms to the world’s richest man.
“Well it’s been fun and time consuming, twitter. Rip,” wrote “Glee” actor Kevin McHale. Author and television writer Kashana Cauley weighed in with another eulogy: “RIP black Twitter (2008- the day it was purchased by an apartheid houseplant)”.
well it’s been fun and time consuming, twitter. Rip
— Kevin McHale (@druidDUDE) April 25, 2022
RIP black Twitter (2008- the day it was purchased by an apartheid houseplant) https://t.co/OyDC8bL8Ig
— Kashana (@kashanacauley) April 25, 2022
Former six-term Vermont governor Howard Dean was one of many who announced his intention to quit the platform should Musk take over, writing, “Many thanks for the knowledge and sharing over the past ten years or so. If Musk takes over Twitter I will be off within a few hours.”
Hi Twitterverse. Many thanks for the knowledge and sharing over the past ten years or so. If Musk takes over Twitter I will be off within a few hours. Might be just as well for my well being but I’ve learned a lot of valuable stuff from many of you.Thank you all. Howard
— Howard Dean (@GovHowardDean) April 25, 2022
Director Rob Reiner and professor and political advisor Robert Reich speculated about the sociopolitical ramifications of Musk’s ownership. The former asked if this means former president Donald Trump will be restored to the platform after he was permanently booted off in the wake of the Jan. 6 insurrection – a move that drew the ire of several conservatives. Musk has been an outspoken critic of the platform for its content moderation policies, arguing that it “undermines democracy.”
Trump stated that he won’t be returning to the platform if he is welcomed back and will be sticking to his fledgling platform Truth Social. Per the The Washington Post, his advisers believe he will be back on Twitter if the ban is lifted.
Now that Elon Musk is buying Twitter, the question for all of us is: Will he allow a Criminal who used this platform to lie and spread disinformation to try to overthrow the US Government to return and continue his Criminal activity? And if he does, how do we combat it?
— Rob Reiner (@robreiner) April 25, 2022
Should we be concerned that the world's richest man now owns Twitter? And that the second richest owns the Washington Post?
— Robert Reich (@RBReich) April 25, 2022
Twitter was also flooded with overjoyed reactions from conservatives who hailed Musk’s takeover as the return of free speech. Prominent pundits including Tomi Lahren celebrated the arrival of “the day of reckoning for Twitter.”
Is free speech a thing again?
the day of reckoning for @Twitter is HERE! #ElonMusk
— Tomi Lahren (@TomiLahren) April 25, 2022
Right-wing politicians like representatives Matt Gaetz and Marjorie Taylor Greene brought up the theory that Twitter engages in “shadow banning,” or deliberately hiding certain users’ content without their knowledge. (In response to these accusations, Twitter has stated multiple times that it does not shadow ban.) Rep. Taylor Greene’s account was permanently suspended earlier this year for spreading misinformation about COVID.
If @elonmusk gets rid of shadow bans and bots my Twitter experience will be vastly different.
— Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz) April 25, 2022
Prepare for blue check mark full scale meltdown after @elonmusk seals the deal and I should get my personal Twitter account restored. pic.twitter.com/MKBQvHCoAH
— Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (@RepMTG) April 25, 2022
Elsewhere on Twitter, opponents to the takeover argued that the best course of action is to remain on the platform. “No matter who owns it, no matter who’s on it, I’m staying to engage with you, listen to diverse opinions & to keep fighting the good fight!” tweeted Mark Hamill.
No matter who owns it, no matter who's on it, I'm staying to engage with you, listen to diverse opinions & to keep fighting the good fight!
(also, to keep posting the inane tweets I'm known for)#TwitterTenacity— Mark Hamill (@MarkHamill) April 25, 2022
Others who do not support the change in ownership urged those with similar views to stay positive or else made light of the situation.
“I stop scrolling, look up from my phone, and out the window. I see a complicated but beautiful world. It’s still going to be there no matter who owns Twitter,” wrote Dan Rather. “And we’ll continue to find ways to live in it, talk about it, and share with each other our thoughts, fears, and dreams.”
I stop scrolling, look up from my phone, and out the window. I see a complicated but beautiful world. It’s still going to be there no matter who owns Twitter. And we'll continue to find ways to live in it, talk about it, and share with each other our thoughts, fears, and dreams.
— Dan Rather (@DanRather) April 25, 2022
March For Our Lives activist David Hogg proposed that Twitter employees take the sale as an opportunity to unionize.
Twitter workers should unionize.
— David Hogg
(@davidhogg111) April 25, 2022
Despite all the hysteria, BuzzFeed tech reporter Katie Notopoulos pointed out that even Musk’s detractors probably aren’t going anywhere: “If you are still on Twitter in April 2022, do not try to pretend you don’t love to eat s— all day.”
Winning take right here:
"If you are still on Twitter in April 2022, do not try to pretend you don’t love to eat shit all day." https://t.co/WjI1QOUCRZ— Jon Favreau (@jonfavs) April 25, 2022
Read below for more reactions.
Hopefully, I don't think people will leave immediately, not that Musk cares. Besides, as long as we can still mute and block extremist/nationalist voices. That said, I am *not* looking forward to Musk's Twitter. #RIP https://t.co/PzOXJTajuJ
— Onnik J. Krikorian (@onewmphoto) April 25, 2022
The only thing I'll say about Elon and Twitter is a quote an old Chicago reporter once said to me about newspaper publishers and their political endorsements: "Nobody ever bought a bicycle they didn't want to ride."
— Chris Hayes (@chrislhayes) April 25, 2022
When the World’s Richest Man can buy up a social media platform that is home to nearly 400 million users it’s time to start asking questions about why… #RIPTwitter
— Jess Davies (@_JessicaDavies) April 25, 2022
The little twitter bird has a new owner. Wonder how long it will take for the new shadow ban council to prevent me from saying stuff like: Hunter Biden laptop. Or even more provocative: Tesla in-car fart app? (Love it when driving my Mom.)
— Tim Allen (@ofctimallen) April 25, 2022
"Mr. Musk: free speech is wonderful, hate speech is unacceptable. Disinformation, misinformation and hate speech have NO PLACE on Twitter.” @DerrickNAACP https://t.co/OcnvDgbtjz
— NAACP (@NAACP) April 25, 2022
He can buy Twitter but he cannot buy one of my paintings. Which means my paintings are worth more than Twitter.
I think I will have a nice piece of apple pie.— John Lurie (@lurie_john) April 25, 2022
Twitter openly censors speech based on political ideologies and makes a mockery of our Constitutional liberties.
If Elon Musk can turn that around to actually protect free speech and encourage open discourse, Twitter’s full potential will be unlocked.— Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) April 25, 2022
I was just having a conversation this weekend if @Twitter is still worth being on because conservatives are shadow-banned so badly (and that’s just what we’re aware of)….
….let’s see what you can do @elonmusk, maybe we can make this space more fair and hospitable again.— Meghan McCain (@MeghanMcCain) April 25, 2022