TGIF: Face Off Edition – by Nellie Bowles – Common Sense
Today, we root for Elon! Elon Musk has been complaining for a while about Twitter being too censorious and biased. Billionaires: They re just like us! He wrote a couple weeks ago: 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? Well, this week Musk answered that question. He went and bought 9.2% of Twitter, becoming its largest shareholder.
Musk was quickly appointed to Twitter s board. Jack Dorsey, the former CEO and the man who helmed Twitter when it blocked unflattering reporting about Biden during the 2020 election (he has since said it was a total mistake ), wrote congratulating Musk, making it sound like the Tesla founder was about to take the helm entirely. Dorsey wrote that Twitter s current head and Elon Musk both lead with their hearts, and they will be an incredible team.
The same people who praised deplatforming these are private companies, went their rallying cry! are suddenly furious that a public company can have its shares acquired and might do free speech they don t like. Musk being pro-free speech is actually a danger to free speech, according to the Washington Post.
I can t speak to Elon Musk s broader moral compass especially on China but I can t help rooting for the guy here:
Dittos.