The Problem with Twitter
Author: AdamDate: Apr 26th, 2023
Twitter has long been considered one of the most influential social media platforms, and its greatest strength has been its ability to spread information quickly. Over the years, it has served as a powerful tool for sharing breaking news, connecting people across the globe, and bringing attention to important issues. However, in recent months, Twitter has become a toxic medium to deliver information. This is primarily due to Musk's decision to remove the verified tag for many accounts, including many journalists and organizations that report at the local and state level.
Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, has been one of the most active and controversial figures on Twitter. With over 130 million followers, Musk has been using the platform to communicate with his fans and followers, promote his companies, and share his personal views on various topics. While some of his tweets have been entertaining, others have been concerning, and many have sparked controversy. For example, in July 2018, Musk made headlines when he called one of the Thai cave rescuers a "pedo guy" on Twitter. While he later apologized for the comment, the incident raised concerns about his behavior on the platform and the impact his tweets could have on others. In another incident, Musk used Twitter to criticize the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) after he was accused of misleading investors about his plans to take Tesla private.
Despite these controversies, Musk's influence on Twitter continues to grow, and he remains one of the most famous figures on the platform. However, his use of Twitter as a medium to deliver news and updates has become increasingly toxic.
With Elon Musk's takeover of Twitter, the platform's direction and trustworthiness are more in question. Shortly after his takeover, a significant fraction of technical experts left the company. This can be a major issue, leading to loss of knowledge and expertise, decreased productivity, quality issues, increased costs, and organizational disruption. More devastating may be the decreased productivity due to a culture shift and from losing these experts. When employees are disengaged, they are less likely to be productive or put in their best effort. Best efforts often go hand in hand with innovation. However, disengaged employees are less likely to be creative or come up with innovative ideas, and it's just a matter of time before Twitter starts to fall behind competitors.
Anyone leaving a toxic work environment will attest that employees who are unhappy with their work environment or feel disengaged are more likely to leave the company. At Twitter, this has led to increased turnover, further fueling the loss of technical experts and leading to its current downward spiral.
On April 25th, the Times Union announced that they will no longer be using Twitter as a news delivery platform. At its surface, this may not seem like a big problem, but it really is the tip of the iceberg. One of Twitter's greatest strengths has been its use to quickly spread information because it allows people to share news and updates in real time. When a major event occurs, Twitter is often the first place people turn to for updates, and it has played a critical role in breaking news stories such as natural disasters, political uprisings, and terrorist attacks.
Twitter's ability to quickly spread information has been one of its greatest strengths over the years. However, with the rise of instability on the platform, particularly with Elon Musk's takeover, the future of Twitter's trustworthiness and direction remains in question. The Times Union's departure may signal the start of a seismic shift for local news organizations. Ultimately, Twitter's actions have resulted in a loss of news and the positive spread of information.
