Elon Musk bought Twitter, and now he’s rebranding it as X. Signs have gone up (and back down), icons are changing, and an old plan is new.
How’d we get here?
On April 4th, 2022, we learned that Musk had purchased enough shares of Twitter to become its largest individual shareholder. Eventually, he followed up with an unsolicited offer to buy 100 percent of Twitter’s shares for $54.20 each, or about $44 billion. Twitteraccepted Musk’s offer, but then things got weird because he tried to cancel the deal.
There was a lot of back-and-forth about bots and text messages, but in the end, Musk settled on buying the company rather than facing a deposition or Chancery Court trial and eventually strode into Twitter HQ carrying a sink.
Since then, there have been layoffs, more layoffs, and even more layoffs — plus drama over Substack, unpaid bills, and blue checkmarks. With ad revenue still down from previous years, Elon finally abdicated the role of CEO in May 2023, installing longtime NBCUniversal ad executive Linda Yaccarino.
Read on for the latest updates about what’s going on inside Twitter right now.
Dec 16, 2022
Mitchell Clark
Musk takes a mulligan.
Elon Musk ran a poll asking when he should un-suspend the journalists who tweeted about “ElonJet.” When “now” won, he said he was redoing the poll, and started a new one that’ll run for 24 hours. Now is currently winning at around 55 percent.
Musk has said he unbanned Trump, as well as a swathe of previously suspended accounts, based on poll results.
Dec 16, 2022
Mitchell Clark, Alex Heathand1 more
Elon Musk starts banning critical journalists from Twitter
Illustration by Kristen Radtke / The Verge; Getty Images
Twitter has suspended the accounts of several prominent reporters who cover Elon Musk, including Ryan Mac of The New York Times, CNN’s Donie O’Sullivan, The Washington Post’s Drew Harwell, The Intercept’s Micah Lee, and Mashable’s Matt Binder, Aaron Rupar, and Tony Webster. This evening, Musk logged in to a Twitter Space to try to explain why and ran a poll asking when the journalists should be unbanned — in both instances, things didn’t exactly go his way.
The reporters who have been banned all seem to have recently tweeted about Musk’s attempts to crack down on the sharing of the whereabouts of his private jet. Apparently, though, accounts that can’t post can still join a Twitter Spaces live audio chat. In a Space that included Harwell, Binder, and the ElonJet account, Musk eventually tried to explain himself.
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Dec 16, 2022
Jay Peters
Twitter is blocking links to Mastodon
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
Twitter is blocking users from tweeting links to many major servers for Mastodon, one of the most notable Twitter alternatives. The ban was enacted sometime during what’s been a chaotic Thursday evening on the platform after journalists and Mastodon’s own account were unexpectedly suspended.
Attempting to tweet many Mastodon links will result in an error message saying, “We can’t complete this request because this link has been identified by Twitter or our partners as being potentially harmful.” Twitter is currently blocking links to the original mastodon.social server and more than 10 other domains The Verge tested.
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Dec 16, 2022
Nilay Patel
TheStreisand effectis a phenomenon that occurs when an attempt to hide, remove, or censor information has theunintended consequence of increasing awareness of that information, often via theInternet.
Just a fun Wikipedia link I’m posting for no reason.
[Wikipedia]
Dec 16, 2022
Jay Peters
Twitter suspends Mastodon after it tweeted about Elon’s jet
Screenshot by Jay Peters / The Verge
Twitter has suspended the official Twitter account of Mastodon, one of the most popular destinations for people seeking a Twitter-like alternative. If you visit @joinmastodon’s profile, you’ll see a message that the account has been suspended.
We don’t know exactly why the account was banned, but it may not have been done entirely out of spite for a rival platform. Instead, it could have been because Mastodon tweeted about @ElonJet.
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Dec 15, 2022
See AlsoEight questions about Twitter’s future now that Elon Musk is taking over | CNN BusinessElon Musk denounces an illegal attempt by Von der Leyen to impose censorship on TwitterEen jaar Twitter onder Musk: grillen, rellen en desinformatieUnder Elon Musk, Twitter has approved 83% of censorship requests by authoritarian governmentsMakena Kelly
Everything ok in there, Mr. Musk? Sincerely, the FTC.
Just this week, we’ve learned that Twitter hasn’t paid rent on its San Francisco HQ, the company’s legal department is in turmoil, and Musk sold nearly $3.6 billion worth of Tesla shares.
And today? Well, all of this financial stress apparently has regulators worried. A source familiar confirmed to me that the FTC sent a request to Twitter asking whether the company had enough resources to comply with its 2011 consent decree with the agency.
FTC Asks Twitter How It Plans to Comply With Consent Decree
[Bloomberg.com]
Dec 15, 2022
Elizabeth Lopatto
Elon Musk sells yet another $3.58 billion of Tesla shares
Illustration by Laura Normand / The Verge
Elon Musk has sold another $3.5 billion in Tesla shares, according to a form filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission today. Since November 2021, the high point of Tesla’s share price, Musk has sold more than $39 billion of shares, The Wall Street Journal reports.
Musk, who recently lost the title of being the world’s richest man, last filed with the SEC about Tesla share sales in November, when he sold $3.4 billion. Before that, he sold $8.4 billion in April and $6.9 billion (nice) in August. He said he was done selling twice, once in April and once in August.
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Dec 15, 2022
Jay Peters
Twitter banned the @ElonJet account tracking Musk’s flights, reinstated it, then banned it again
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
Hours after suspending @ElonJet, an account that tracked the trips taken by Elon Musk’s private plane, Twitter banned the account’s creator, Jack Sweeney, and dozens of other accounts he operates. Twitter then un-suspended @ElonJet, which was briefly tweeting to try and get its account back before Twitter banned it again.
If you try and visit @ElonJet or Sweeney’s account, you’ll see a message that the account has been suspended. Twitter has also been blocking links to versions of the Elon Jet tracker on other platforms, like Instagram and Facebook. Attempting to tweet certain links to Sweeney’s Elon Musk jet tracker on other platforms will display a message that the link is “potentially harmful,” as spotted by Tony Webster.
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Dec 14, 2022
James Vincent
Elon Musk loses title of world’s richest man.
Let that be a lesson to all you aspirational billionaires: don’t buy Twitter. Musk’s wealth, as tracked by Forbes, has taken a dip because of the falling share price of Tesla. As one analyst told BBC News:
“The Twitter circus show has hurt the Musk brand and it’s a major overhang on Tesla’s stock. Musk is Tesla and Tesla is Musk.”
Dec 14, 2022
Mitchell Clark
Jack Dorsey on Musk’s Twitter files: ‘There’s nothing to hide’
Laura Normand / The Verge
Jack Dorsey has responded to Elon Musk’s purported exposé known as “The Twitter Files,” and he’s done so in an essay that’s mercifully not written as a Twitter thread. In it, the social network’s co-founder and former CEO says that he believes the company has nothing to hide, contrary to how the files have been presented. He also says he wishes the information had been “released Wikileaks-style,” and asks that the internet not go after Twitter employees for perceived slights. Of course, his article also promotes his own social networking protocol and Bitcoin.
Dorsey’s response comes after Elon Musk has spent over a week promoting five selective document releases known as the Twitter Files, which show internal documents, Slack logs, and emails around things like Twitter’s removal of Donald Trump following the January 6th riots, moderation “blacklists,” and how the site dealt with news about Hunter Biden’s laptop. The threads, and Musk’s promotion of them, have largely taken on a conspiratorial tone, painting the old Twitter leadership and employees as being in cahoots with the government to silence Twitter users.
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Dec 14, 2022
Richard Lawler
The New York Times reports Elon Musk’s personal lawyer no longer works for Twitter.
Since Elon Musk took over Twitter his personal lawyer and one-time The Hoop Collective podcast guest Alex Spiro — who defended him in the “pedo guy” trial — was leading legal and policy matters, but not anymore.
The NYT cites six people who said Musk was unhappy with some of Spiro’s moves, including holding over Twitter deputy general counsel James A. Baker. This became an issue when Musk apparently realized the former FBI lawyer was a part of reviewing the documents in his prized Twitter Files leak.
As a side note, the NYT reports Musk’s cost-cutting continues. More execs are out, the kitchen staff was laid off, items like office supplies and electronics are going up for auction and Musk isn’t paying the rent for its HQ, where some engineers sleep.
So, maybe consider tossing Elon the $8 for Blue? He might need it.
Musk Shakes Up Twitter’s Legal Team as He Looks to Cut More Costs
[The New York Times]
Dec 13, 2022
Nilay Patel
Whatever, I’m not a geologist.
Twitter’s new manual verification-and-labeling process is going just great, as the Norway’s Prime Minister, Foreign Minister, and Ministry of Foreign Affairs have all been labeled “Nigeria government organization.”
Dec 12, 2022
Emma RothandMitchell Clark
Twitter Blue is back, letting you buy a blue checkmark again
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
Elon Musk’s $8-per-month Twitter Blue subscription with verification is officially available, and you’ll need a verified phone number to sign up.
In a thread on Twitter, the platform notes that Blue will cost $11 per month if you sign up on iOS and will grant you access to the ability to edit tweets, upload 1080p videos, reader mode, and, of course, the coveted blue checkmark. If you paid for the old $4.99 / $2.99 Blue package, then you’ll need to subscribe again to keep its benefits, while anyone who signed up on Apple at the old $7.99 per month price will be automatically renewed at $11 per month unless they cancel.
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Dec 12, 2022
Nilay Patel
“Twitter isn’t real life” remains Biden’s position on social media.
Max Tani reports on Bidenworld’s reaction to Elon / Twitter for Semafor:
The disdain for Twitter inside the White House has little to do with right-wing control of the platform, and more to do with its role inside the Democratic Party: Biden’s wing sees Twitter as fuel for activist voices who push ingroup thinking, left-of-center bias, and socioeconomic bias.
Why The White House isn't stressed about Elon Musk's Twitter
[www.semafor.com]
Dec 12, 2022
Alex Cranz
Elon Musk booed at Dave Chappelle show, claims it was only like ‘10 percent boos’
Kristen Radtke / The Verge; Getty Images
Elon Musk took a brief break from running multiple companies mired in drama to create a little more drama by appearing onstage with Dave Chappelle during his show Sunday night at the Chase Center in San Francisco.
During Chappelle’s set, the controversial comedian introduced the controversial billionaire, who came onstage to confused applause and booing. Musk proceeded to bomb harder than the time he appeared on SNL.
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Dec 12, 2022
Richard Lawler
The boos that cost $44 billion.
If you weren’t at the Dave Chappelle / Chris Rock comedy show in San Francisco on Sunday night, then you missed this event. Chappelle brought Elon Musk on stage, only for Twitter’s billionaire owner to receive so many boos he couldn’t get a word in edgewise.
Presumably, this isn’t the reception Musk usually gets on the 10th floor of the Twitter HQ from any of the software engineers who still work there.
Welcome to hell, Elon.
Dec 10, 2022
Emma Roth
Elon Musk’s $8 Twitter Blue subscription is coming back with phone number verification and a higher price on iOS
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
Twitter’s relaunching its Blue subscription on Monday, one month after abandoning a chaotic first attempt that spurred hoax accounts and general mayhem.
As reported previously, the subscription will cost $8 per month to purchase on the web or $11 per month via the iOS App Store to make up for the up to 30 percent commission Apple takes off of in-app purchases. This time, anyone paying for Blue who wants to display a “verified” checkmark on their profile will need to register a phone number first, and changing your “handle, display name or profile photo” will remove the label until your account is reviewed again.
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Dec 10, 2022
Emma Roth
Elon Musk reportedly threatens to sue Twitter employees who leak information to the press.
An email obtained by Platformer’s Zoë Schiffer warns employees that Twitter will “immediately seek damages” if they violate their non-disclosure agreements.
According to Schiffer, Musk says employees will “get the response they deserve” if they send “detailed info to the media.” Musk is asking workers to sign a pledge indicating that they understand the policy, which they’re reportedly expected to return by the end of the day today.
Dec 10, 2022
Sean Hollister
Want to buy Twitter’s espresso machine? Bidding starts at $25.
Is Twitter liquidating its San Francisco kitchen? Seems so — I definitely remember seeing one of these @-sign planters last I was there, and I can’t imagine anyone else putting the bird on a soda machine. They’re auctioning off loads of those $5,000 Google Jamboards, TVs and office chairs too.
Before you ask, no, they’re not selling the sink. That level of delicious irony will have to wait.
Dec 9, 2022
Thomas Ricker
Get ready to grab that idle Twitter handle you’ve been eyeing.
Twitter has about 250 million active users on any given day, but six times as many accounts have no tweets or recent logins. I just hope Musk releases them “soon” as in Christmas, not “soon” as in a fully-autonomous vehicles.
Dec 9, 2022
Alex Heath
The Twitter checkmarks cometh.
Twitter is gearing up to relaunch its verification program as soon as tomorrow, though the release could be pushed to early next week, I’m told. The plan is for a total of three checkmarks: the paid Twitter Blue subscription for a blue check (existing, non-paid blue checks will lose them 90 days post-launch if they don’t pay), a grey check designated for government accounts and managed by Twitter, and a gold check for advertisers.
Based on what I’m hearing, Twitter is doing its best to avoid the impersonation fiasco that occurred after the brief rollout of paid verification before. This time, the plan is to temporarily remove an account’s blue check for seven days if the display name is changed. You’re welcome, Mario.
Dec 8, 2022
Thomas Ricker
Take a look inside Elon Musk’s Twitter “hotel.”
Don Draper did it long before Silicon Valley companies like Google turned sleeping at the office into a competition. Some see such dedication as misguided, others a badge of honor.
I’d occasionally sleep in our crummy NYC office when helping to launch The Verge. Twitter 2.0 is a luxury hotel, by comparison, with slippers, alarm clock, a wardrobe, and washing machine, according totheBBC.
Dec 7, 2022
Mitchell Clark
The last Moment for Twitter.
Twitter announced it’s getting rid of Moments, the curated collection of tweets that users could create, which originally launched in 2015. Existing Moments will be fine, but we won’t be seeing any new ones.
It seems likely this is another victim of Elon Musk’s desire to simplify the site, similar to how he cut the oft-amusing “tweeted from” labels, which have recently stopped appearing for most users.
Dec 5, 2022
Justine Calma
Climate misinformation explodes on Twitter
David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Lies about climate change on Twitter escalated to unprecedented levels this year, according to new analyses. The unnerving rise of content that rejects widely accepted climate science —sometimes referred to as climate skepticism or climate denial — piles on top of growing concerns about misinformation and hateful content that’s proliferated since Elon Musk’s takeover of the social media platform.
There have been more tweets and retweets “using climate-sceptic terminology” in 2022 than in any other year since Twitter’s founding in 2006, according to analysis conducted for The Times by City, University of London researchers. That’s 850,000 climate-skeptic tweets or retweetsthis year compared to 650,000 in 2021 and 220,000 in 2020.
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Dec 4, 2022
Emma Roth
Twitter’s getting two of its biggest advertisers back.
After claiming that Apple “mostly stopped” advertising on the platform last week, Elon Musk said during a Twitter Space on Saturday that the company has “fully resumed” advertising on Twitter.
Meanwhile, Platformer’s Zoë Schiffer reports that Amazon’s planning to bring ads back to Twitter — to the tune of $100 million per year — “pending some security tweaks to the company’s ad platform.”
