The Twitter thread

[Arantor]

I have theories on this, none of them nice, all of them starting at 'dark and depressing' and verging into 'spitefully cynical'. I want to be wrong, I just don't think I am.

In 'happier' news, there are now view counts on Tweets. Anecdata so far suggests these are mostly nonsense.

 

[Retro]

I'm happy to hear those theories if you'd like to share. Perhaps in private if you're not happy to here.

 

[Tiffany]

Just read the article on Twitter removing the suicide prevention links. I'd also like an explanation, though my imagination has already taken me to places and reasons for the removal that are concerning. Does Musk not know about all of the live "on video" suicides FB has had? I'm going to just add, I'm perplexed for now.

 

[Arantor]

My theories begin in places where Musk would be quite tolerant of people committing suicide on the position that only weak people do such things (not true) and the sort of audience he wants wouldn't do that, with a stop-over in 'well, that means fewer people who would disagree with his definition of freedom', and into 'we're going to turn this into a literal hellscape to keep monetising the kinds of views Musk likes and this is just yet one more way to drive publicity because no bad publicity'.

 

[Retro]

on the position that only weak people do such things (not true)

I despise people who think like that. There's nothing worse than being told to pull your socks up when feeling low ffs.

 

[Arantor]

I assume Musk thinks like that. It would fit his general pattern of narcissism.

On a broader point, I've been wondering just how much of Twitter's design really causes bad things to escalate by way of 'you see something on a timeline, you respond to it with a put-down, now everyone else you know can see both it and your reply'.

It's almost like you need some kind of way of reinforcing positive loops and disincentivising negative feedback loops - something that the current networks thrive on...

 

[Crims]

I assume Musk thinks like that. It would fit his general pattern of narcissism.

On a broader point, I've been wondering just how much of Twitter's design really causes bad things to escalate by way of 'you see something on a timeline, you respond to it with a put-down, now everyone else you know can see both it and your reply'.

It's almost like you need some kind of way of reinforcing positive loops and disincentivising negative feedback loops - something that the current networks thrive on...

Facebook by comparison was proven to create conflict, especially the genocide in Myanmar. Twitter I've always associated from that same era (2010-2012) with the psuedo-reliable status emphasis. A lot of the problem with it is pure propaganda.

 

[Retro]

Twitter news seems to have gone quiet recently. I wonder what's happening there.

Also, Trump still hasn't posted there since being reinstated, so I think he meant it when he said he wouldn't. Apparently, he could be sued by the investors of Truth Social if he did as it would take attention away from it and hence devalue it.

 

[Arantor]

Musk is keeping his head down since Andrew Tate, plus dealing with Tesla stock, and raising the price of Twitter Blue but one presumes he’s off trying to find someone to offload the CEO role onto.

 

[Tiffany]

I'm still seeing news on "twitter-files" being unloaded, like some were the other day on Adam Schiff and his censorship. As with any form of shock, as it continues, your shock wains and you just expect it....that's kind of where I'm at with Twitter now. Fascinated in the beginning but a bit of "yawn" is creeping in.

Interesting knowing the background of Trump's real reason for not going back to Twitter at all fearing a lawsuit.

Tesla's declining stock performance has been interesting. I'm watching for the bounce back and what trigger's it.

 

[Arantor]

It has sort of stabilised but it’s still a long way from where it was a few months ago.

As for Truth Social… it’s a mess, and I could imagine just the whole else of Trump not going near Twitter because he tried to build his own and it hasn’t exactly worked out for him. Another big ol’ L right there.

 

[Retro]

Looks like Musk is driving Twitter into the ground even faster than I expected, since it might go into bankruptcy soon. Just how big is the debt for just the interest to be $300 million?!

Still, I can't actually see it going bust and offline as it's just too entrenched into modern culture. Someone will save it, somehow.

Is Elon Musk’s Twitter in too much trouble to cover its debts?

Social media platform faces $300m interest payment this week, and default could trigger debt restructuring – or bankruptcy

www.theguardian.com

 

[Arantor]

Well, part of the problem is that he leveraged a lot of high-interest debt to fund his ridiculous offer, and the other part of the problem is that his 'free speech' antics drove away the majority of the high-paying advertisers...

I seem to recall figures of $1bn/year in interest repayments. We're 3 months in so 1/4 of that is now due, so yeah...

 

[Arantor]

This was too good not to share. Genius. (Though I don't know why it's so big....)

 

[Crims]

(I was going to make a new article or page for this but I know people are just as likely to see this)

Twitter has a stealth update where you can send "public" messages, except can only be answered by a select circle called the "Twitter Circle". This is creating safe spaces for incredibly harmful people. Is obviously banking on rich people creating more closed-yet-public dialogue.
I'm taking advantage of this obviously conservative policy by using it in reverse, sending messages to my favourite Twitter people and only including them in the circle, as direct chatting with celebrities doesn't work well for Elon.

 

[Retro]

Twitter down. Looks like more mismanagement by the great man himself.

Twitter users told they’ve hit daily post limit in latest outage since Musk takeover

US tech publication reports CEO Elon Musk has asked staff to pause all new development to stabilise app

www.theguardian.com

And this is huge.

TechScape: Why Twitter ending free access to its APIs should be a ‘wake-up call’

In this week’s newsletter: The social media network is putting its APIs – the under-praised tool that keeps the internet as we know it going – behind a paywall. And the ramifications are huge

www.theguardian.com

 

[Crims]

TechScape: Why Twitter ending free access to its APIs should be a ‘wake-up call’

In this week’s newsletter: The social media network is putting its APIs – the under-praised tool that keeps the internet as we know it going – behind a paywall. And the ramifications are huge

www.theguardian.com

At risk of sounding biased like doomers are, I'd say that Facebook was the first to monetise social groups. In fact, Facebook intends to make us depend on it for survival/basic needs.

 

[Retro]

Well, this is hardly surprising. I'm sure Musk actually wants Twitter to be a cesspit of hate.

Note that there's a rise in disinformation campaigns on there that will only get worse now. It's not too much of a stretch to suspect that he's actually being paid by some country to allow this to happen. Figuring out which country it might be isn't too hard to do.

Twitter insiders: We can't protect users from trolling under Musk

Current and former employees of the company say there are serious ramifications from mass lay-offs.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[Tiffany]

Well, this is hardly surprising. I'm sure Musk actually wants Twitter to be a cesspit of hate.

Note that there's a rise in disinformation campaigns on there that will only get worse now. It's not too much of a stretch to suspect that he's actually being paid by some country to allow this to happen. Figuring out which country it might be isn't too hard to do.

Twitter insiders: We can't protect users from trolling under Musk

Current and former employees of the company say there are serious ramifications from mass lay-offs.

www.bbc.co.uk

Very scary environment for children online without parents knowing who is lurking too because of Twitter's lack of safety controls and moderators. Which begs the argument for the necessity to continue to foster smaller websites that have a more family vibe of friends, where each member naturally looks out for other members and friends. The big websites make each member a number rather then someone special, and just become a haven for shock and over-done advertising, not to mention harvesting your data and selling it and you know they do even though "they" say they don't.

Exclusive academic data plus testimony from Twitter users backs up their allegations, suggesting hate is thriving under Mr Musk's leadership, with trolls emboldened, harassment intensifying and a spike in accounts following misogynistic and abusive profiles

In the end, Musk might have bought a very expensive website that fails because he doesn't have the systems and staff in place to properly offer the most basic of services, which is moderating the hate.

 

[Retro]

All very true, especially the way a member is just an asset to be exploited for money on the big sites.

It's especially sickening when psychos in suicide groups encourage a vulnerable user to commit suicide and then they actually succeed in making them do it.

 

[CyberGeek]

This was too good not to share. Genius. (Though I don't know why it's so big....)

View attachment 1072

Mr Tweet or Mr Twit? Oh, please

 

[CyberGeek]

I'm not even sure that's the way to run a website of Twitter's magnitude....reinstatement by polling??

On any website really . If that’s how you reinstate a banned member on sites even as small as this, I could imagine that ending well with all the drama...

 

[Retro]

Musk continues to ruin Twitter. The other day he said that he wouldn't mind selling it and I hope he does to someone that will run it properly, sooner rather than later.

Hundreds of Russian and Chinese state propaganda accounts are thriving on Twitter after Elon Musk wiped out the team that fought these networks, the BBC has found.

The unit worked to combat "information operations", coordinated campaigns by countries such as Russia, China, and Iran, made to influence public opinion and disrupt democracy.

But experts and former employees say the majority of these specialists resigned or were laid off, leaving the platform vulnerable to foreign manipulation. The BBC has spoken to several of them. They asked for anonymity, citing non-disclosure agreements and threats they received online.

"The whole human layer has been wiped out. All Twitter has left are automated detections systems," a former senior employee said.

Twitter staff cuts leave Russian trolls unchecked

Troll farms are thriving after Elon Musk wiped out the team fighting them.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[Tiffany]

Agreed, please sell Twitter and go back to making rockets, designing cars that don't catch on fire or brain implants that might have a positive outcome.

 

[FF]

Agreed, please sell Twitter and go back to making rockets, designing cars that don't catch on fire or brain implants that might have a positive outcome.

Personally, I am fine with seeing Twitter go down in a dumpster fire, and I hope that Elon Musk keeps it. The place is toxic and brings out the worst traits in everyone.