Musk on Friday denied the charges and added that he intended to sue the employee in question, calling them unfounded.
Elon Musk, the CEO of Twitter, is making news with his tweets once more. This time, however, it’s due to claims that his tweets were artificially enhanced by a Twitter employee rather than their content. Musk on Friday denied the charges and added that he intended to sue the employee in question, calling them unfounded.
The allegations first surfaced earlier this week when Musk’s tweets, retweets, and answers took up a large portion of most people’s Twitter “For You” feeds. Platformer reported that the social media juggernaut was charged with exaggerating Musk’s remarks.
It was asserted that Musk’s tweets were promoted by a covert team at Twitter, giving them greater exposure and interaction than they otherwise would have.
Now, Musk has addressed these accusations. He posted on Twitter, saying “Several major media sources incorrectly reported that my Tweets were boosted above normal levels earlier this week. A review of my Tweet likes & views over the past 6 months, especially as a ratio of followers, shows this to be false.”
Several major media sources incorrectly reported that my Tweets were boosted above normal levels earlier this week.
A review of my Tweet likes & views over the past 6 months, especially as a ratio of followers, shows this to be false.
We did have a bug that briefly caused… https://t.co/nM3SgUfoM7
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 17, 2023
Musk further noted that there was “a bug that briefly caused replies to have the same prominence as primary Tweets, but that has now been fixed.” The billionaire said that a disgruntled employee was to blame for the algorithm problem and that legal action will be taken against them.
“The source” of the bogus Platformer article is a disgruntled employee who had been on paid time off for months, had already accepted a job at Google and felt the need to poison the well on the way out. Twitter will be taking legal action against him,” Musk tweeted.
https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1626523188149764096
Latest News
- Elon Musk Suspends NY Times, CNN And Washington Post Accounts From Twitter
- Report: Elon Musk Messy Takeover Of Twitter Hasn’t Slowed Migration To Other Social Media Networks.
Casey Newton, a platformer reporter, also tweeted about the encounter and defended her reporting. “This is completely false. We stand by our reporting.”
This is completely false. We stand by our reporting pic.twitter.com/ylfbngmoBq
— Casey Newton (@CaseyNewton) February 17, 2023
Musk has been involved in controversies around his usage of Twitter before. He tweeted in 2018 that he was thinking about taking Tesla private, which boosted the value of the business. The Securities and Exchange Commission later deemed the tweet false, and Musk was fined $20 million.
Yet in this instance, Musk is confident that his tweets were not exaggerated. It is unclear what proof he will offer to support his assertions or what the result of any legal action may be.
The event has also sparked debate regarding Twitter’s internal procedures and content moderation policies. The handling of fake news and misinformation by Twitter has drawn criticism in the past. These most recent charges will further heighten doubts about the company’s capacity to control its platform adequately.
The event also raises more general concerns about Twitter’s internal operations and moderation procedures, which will undoubtedly be examined in the coming months.