Elon Musk and Twitter Reach Deal for Sale (Update: WSJ report details Musk’s relationship with Putin) (1 Viewer)

[SaintForLife]

Elon Musk struck a deal on Monday to buy Twitter for roughly $44 billion, in a victory by the world’s richest man to take over the influential social network frequented by world leaders, celebrities and cultural trendsetters.

Twitter agreed to sell itself to Mr. Musk for $54.20 a share, a 38 percent premium over the company’s share price this month before he revealed he was the firm’s single largest shareholder. It would be the largest deal to take a company private — something Mr. Musk has said he will do with Twitter — in at least two decades, according to data compiled by Dealogic.

“Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated,” Mr. Musk said in a statement announcing the deal. “Twitter has tremendous potential — I look forward to working with the company and the community of users to unlock it.”

The deal, which has been unanimously approved by Twitter’s board, is expected to close this year, subject to a vote of Twitter shareholders and certain regulatory approvals.

The blockbuster agreement caps what had seemed an improbable attempt by the famously mercurial Mr. Musk, 50, to buy the social media company — and immediately raises questions about what he will do with the platform and how his actions will affect online speech globally.

Elon Musk and Twitter Reach Deal for Sale

Twitter agreed to be taken over at $54.20 a share, a 38 percent premium over the share price before it was revealed that Mr. Musk had been buying up the company’s stock.

www-nytimes-com.cdn.ampproject.org

If Musk does what he claims he wants to do it will be a big improvement and good for free speech.

 

[MT15]

 

[MT15]

 

[MT15]

 

[MT15]

 

[Optimus Prime]

One year after billionaire Elon Musk bought Twitter for $44 billion, aiming to rid it of a “woke mind virus” that he believed was suppressing free speech, the site’s business outlook appears dire.


The number of people actively tweeting has dropped by more than 30 percent, according to previously unreported data obtained by The Washington Post, and the company — which the entrepreneur behind Tesla and SpaceX has renamed X — is hemorrhaging advertisers and revenue, interviews show.


But in at least one respect, Musk has delivered on his original promise: Twitter has become far less “woke.”

Through dramatic product changes, sudden policy shifts and his own outsize presence on the platform, Musk has rapidly re-engineered who has a voice on a service that used to be the hub of real-time news and global debate.

A site that fueled social movements such as the Arab Spring, Black Lives Matter and #MeToo has veered noticeably rightward under Musk, especially in the United States, say organizers from across the political spectrum.

A Post analysis of dozens of conservative and right-wing influencers and media figures found that many saw their follower counts rise on the day Musk became owner and continue rising at a rate higher than under Twitter’s previous ownership. None of the dozens of popular liberal and left-wing accounts examined by The Post show the same pattern……..

Musk has furthered the company’s rightward turn by displacing the mainstream media from a position of authority on the site: Both X’s software and iconic “blue check” verification system now elevate the tweets of paying subscribers — many of them conservative influencers.

People who have worked with Musk and his CEO, Linda Yaccarino, say they intend to turn X into a self-contained forum for creator content where people can watch original shows like Carlson’s.


Amid these shifts, the platform has become a cacophony of misinformation and confusing reports, according to new research from the University of Washington, which found that self-described news aggregators and open-source researchers far outperformed traditional media on the site during the Israel-Gaza war.


“Twitter used to be where politics and news conversations were being shaped on a minute-by-minute basis. I don’t think it’s because I’m a Democrat or on the left — it’s just no longer a place to get accurate information,” said Dan Pfeiffer, the White House communications director under President Barack Obama…….

https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/10/27/elon-musk-twitter-x-anniversary/

 

[UriUT]

Yeah, can't make this up.

 

[MT15]

More idiocy from Musk

 

[UriUT]

“Twitter used to be where politics and news conversations were being shaped on a minute-by-minute basis. I don’t think it’s because I’m a Democrat or on the left — it’s just no longer a place to get accurate information,” said Dan Pfeiffer, the White House communications director under President Barack Obama…….

Yeah I really miss this part from Twitter. Threads and Post don't quite have the comment engagement that Twitter had yet. There were noise obviously that were just ill informed or just dumb takes. But the replies were insightful and at times lead to other revelations. It was indeed a good town square. And their algorithm was decent in suggesting random topics.

 

[MT15]

Yeah I really miss this part from Twitter. Threads and Post don't quite have the comment engagement that Twitter had yet. There were noise obviously that were just ill informed or just dumb takes. But the replies were insightful and at times lead to other revelations. It was indeed a good town square. And their algorithm was decent in suggesting random topics.

It’s hard to dispute the theory that Musk broke Twitter on purpose. His actions have been so completely one-sided and resulted in elevation of so much white supremacy, anti-Semitism, and anti-vax nonsense that it’s dubious that it’s accidental.

Add to that his campaign against “fact-checkers” and he seems to be bent on elevating disinformation.

 

[Optimus Prime]

X now valued at $19bn – less than half of what Elon Musk paid for it

‘We’re rapidly transforming the company from sort of what it was,’ Musk told employees recently

www.independent.co.uk

 

[bdb13]

I think the blue checkmark as an official designation was fundamental to the success of Twitter and when he screwed with that he set in motion the expedited downfall of the platform.

"Too smart" for his own good.

 

[coldseat]

I think the blue checkmark as an official designation was fundamental to the success of Twitter and when he screwed with that he set in motion the expedited downfall of the platform.

"Too smart" for his own good.

It's more like "Too full of hubris" for his own good.

 

[MT15]

It's more like "Too full of hubris" for his own good.

Yeah, he’s very similar to Trump. Not nearly as smart as he thinks he is.

 

[Bigdaddysaints]

Yea, there was a legit vetting process to be verified. Now as long as you have a CC, you can be verified.

 

[bdb13]

It's more like "Too full of hubris" for his own good.

Yeah, more or less what I was saying.

 

[The moose]

It’s hard to dispute the theory that Musk broke Twitter on purpose. His actions have been so completely one-sided and resulted in elevation of so much white supremacy, anti-Semitism, and anti-vax nonsense that it’s dubious that it’s accidental.

Add to that his campaign against “fact-checkers” and he seems to be bent on elevating disinformation.

Larry Ellison and Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal are large owners in this deal if you think for one second they have no say for the 7 billion they put up is crazy. I can see the Saudi prince not wanting it the way it was. Ellison is a piece of crap that was on early conference calls about the election fight.

as much as I dislike Elon his backers are just as bad if not worse.

 

[MT15]

These two tweets were back to back on my feed. Just can’t make this up:

 

[MT15]

I think Musk has really stepped in it this time.