'How Elon Musk Destroyed Twitter' authors say platform is 'a tool for controlling political discourse'

Elon Musk is astir arsenic inescapable arsenic Donald Trump. The proprietor of SpaceX and Tesla and the world’s richest man, Musk makes headlines weekly. But these days, it’s much for X, wherever helium stirs up contention by seemingly amplifying right-wing views and reposting comments suggesting that women should not person the close to vote (only “high presumption males” and immoderate others should). Musk besides precocious hosted an interrogation with Trump that was filled with falsehoods. Last week, Trump projected a authorities ratio committee headed by Musk.

While Walter Isaacson conscionable told Musk’s beingness communicative successful an authorized biography, a caller publication zeroes successful connected Musk and his acquisition and ownership of Twitter. “Character Limit: How Elon Musk Destroyed Twitter” — retired Tuesday — is written by 2 California-based New York Times reporters: Kate Conger, who lives successful Oakland and has been covering Twitter, and Ryan Mac, who lives successful Los Angeles and often writes astir Musk. When their 2 subjects converged, they started moving unneurotic and realized the communicative warranted a big-picture look beyond what regular articles could provide.

“The Isaacson publication is the publication that Elon wanted,” Mac said successful a caller associated video interrogation with Conger. “You tin archer by the magnitude that he’s promoted it himself.”

Conger notes that portion they didn’t get to interrogation Musk for the publication and recovered Isaacson’s publication adjuvant for providing Musk’s perspective, “we benefited from reporting astir Elon alternatively than done Elon.”

“You get the clearest representation of idiosyncratic from radical adjacent to them, not needfully from themselves,” she said. “All of america person a clouded imaginativeness of who we are and however we travel crossed successful the world.”

This interrogation has been edited for magnitude and clarity.

(Penguin Press)

Before Musk, Twitter had superior financial, enactment and contented moderation issues. Did Musk destruct Twitter oregon conscionable remake it successful his ain progressively twisted image?

Kate Conger: There was this truly simplistic communicative that it was the bully guys astatine Twitter versus the atrocious feline successful Elon and the communicative is overmuch much analyzable than that truthful we wanted to seizure however Twitter came to beryllium successful a presumption wherever idiosyncratic could swoop successful and get it the mode Elon did.

Ryan Mac: But connected the semantics, Twitter does not beryllium anymore. It’s X. On fiscal metrics, the valuation of the institution has tanked. Now it’s banned successful Brazil. So helium has truly devalued oregon destroyed parts of the institution down to the sanction itself.

Why did things spell truthful incorrect nether Musk?

Mac: He believed helium had this expertise successful Twitter due to the fact that he’s an avid societal media user. He thought, “I person the astir followers, truthful I cognize what’s champion for this company.”

It is inarguable what he’s done arsenic an entrepreneur. SpaceX has revolutionized the abstraction industry. Tesla has mainstreamed electrical cars. He didn’t cognize overmuch astir manufacturing electrical vehicles. He wasn’t a rocket scientist. But helium was capable to portion things down to archetypal principles and bash things much efficiently.

So helium is truthful convinced that his instinct is close that helium acts connected immoderate impulse: “I americium the hero, truthful I should dictate what happens.” He has been truthful successful, but successful the lawsuit of Twitter, that instinct did not service him well.

Conger: Twitter is fundamentally a societal occupation not a tech occupation portion his different businesses absorption chiefly connected engineering issues. He didn’t admit the quality bounds he’d scope with the challenges helium didn’t cognize however to woody with.

Mac: There’s not galore skills determination that lucifer up. Everyone has their ain unsighted spots and successful immoderate ways, this publication is astir Elon’s unsighted spots, but the contented is that nary 1 tin clasp him to account.

And helium has successful immoderate ways radicalized himself. His X provender is littered with misinformation and posts with a Nazi apologist.

“I anticipation readers recognize much intelligibly that this was, is and volition beryllium a instrumentality for controlling governmental discourse,” said Kate Conger, co-writer with Ryan Mac of the publication “Character Limit: How Elon Musk Destroyed Twitter.”

(JJ Geiger)

You’d expect much from a “high presumption male” similar himself.

Mac: That’s different post that is not adjacent connected the spectrum of tenable governmental debate. It’s conscionable bizarre to me.

Were you guys progressive Twitter users?

Mac: The astir addicted.

So, similar Elon, you could tally the company?

Mac: Oh hellhole no. It’s similar the Defense [Against] the Dark Arts presumption successful “Harry Potter” wherever radical conscionable rhythm through. It’s the worst occupation successful the satellite due to the fact that you’re conscionable going to get yelled astatine by immoderate faction each the time. It’s hubristic to deliberation you could bash it and I deliberation it takes idiosyncratic benignant of crazy. Hopefully I’m sane capable to cull that presumption erstwhile it’s offered to me.

When it’s offered? If you were successful charge, what would you similar to spot successful presumption of contented moderation?

Conger: I’m funny successful the exemplary [former Twitter Chief Executive] Parag Agrawal was exploring, allowing much types of contented without giving them algorithmic amplification and reach. The manufacture much broadly is starting to drift successful that absorption and it’s worthy exploring.

Ryan, what astir you?

Mac: This is the opening of that hubristic content that I should beryllium capable to tally a company. I’ll permission that to the professionals.

Conger: First happening Ryan would bash is prohibition my account.

Mac: I would besides prohibition my relationship truthful I don’t person to usage it anymore.

Do you guys usage X little present owed to Elon’s changes?

Conger: Yes. It’s mostly a relation of the radical that I travel migrating to Mastodon, Threads and Bluesky truthful I pursuit my involvement groups astir the internet.

How overmuch interaction does X person connected politics?

Conger: There is this communal cognition of tech companies that they are these benignant of neutral, faceless entities trying to support their thumbs disconnected the scale. Twitter’s ever tried to support this mediate crushed wherever it’s a abstraction for governmental conversation, but the level has tried to enactment successful the shadows of that. We’re conscionable present for immoderate goes. Elon has precise evidently and intelligibly breached that mold. I anticipation readers recognize much intelligibly that this was, is and volition beryllium a instrumentality for controlling governmental sermon and to deliberation astir it successful that way. I truly privation to dispel the conception that immoderate of these platforms clasp a neutral stance.

So should radical displacement to Threads oregon different places portion Musk owns X?

Conger: I don’t deliberation we privation to beryllium ushering a idiosyncratic basal from Elon Musk implicit to Mark Zuckerberg.

Mac: I don’t consciousness large astir utilizing Threads, to beryllium honest. I’ve had my ain issues with Zuckerberg.

Conger: Ryan is universally unpopular with CEOs.

Mac: At slightest Zuckerberg hasn’t banned me, which Musk really did for a bit.

Conger: Give it time.

Mac: But radical are already leaving X. Musk is driving radical away. Threads and Bluesky had banner days from Brazilians joining their platforms. That could compound connected itself and person a disastrous effect for X.

If X fails completely, volition that person immoderate interaction connected Musk?

Mac: I bash deliberation this has damaged his reputation. He is not the all-conquering entrepreneur that tin locomotion into immoderate concern and state himself the expert. But he’s inactive the world’s richest man. SpaceX is much ascendant than ever. Tesla is present the ascendant electrical conveyance seller here. So I deliberation 10 years from now, he’ll beryllium much salient than ever.