Elon Musk Buys 9.2% of Twitter, Mysteriously Polls Users About State of Free Speech

A regulatory filing indicates that Musk is now the company's largest shareholder.

Today, news surfaced via a regulatory filing that Tesla CEO Elon Musk had recently become Twitter's largest shareholder, buying a 9.2 percent stake in the company as of March 14, worth about $3 billion at the time of purchase. This tracks with cryptic tweets he sent a little more than a week later, gauging users' sense of the company's commitment to free speech:

The consequences of this poll will be important. Please vote carefully.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 25, 2022

It's not clear at present what type of involvement Musk will have in Twitter's decision making processes, or whether he will be asked to join the company's board. (Twitter's former CEO and co-founder Jack Dorsey will be leaving the board next month.)

Given that Twitter serves as the de facto public town square, failing to adhere to free speech principles fundamentally undermines democracy.

What should be done? https://t.co/aPS9ycji37

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 26, 2022

For free speech supporters who have panned Twitter's content moderation practices, like removing former President Donald Trump from the platform following the January 6 Capitol riots and suppressing sharing of the New York Post's accurately reported story on Hunter Biden's laptop—some of which Dorsey has admitted were errors—Musk's possibly greater involvement is a welcome change. Musk has long considered starting an open-source social media platform to serve as a rival to Twitter. Today's news indicates his interest in fixing what's already there. Or his interest in performance art. Or in making money and sending stock prices soaring with his every move.

"Twitter is particularly vulnerable to outside pressure because, unlike Google, Facebook, Amazon, and Snap, the company's founders don't have special voting control over its future," report Giles Turner and Craig Trudell at Bloomberg. But, "the type of form used [in the Securities and Exchange Commission filing] often indicates the investor isn't seeking to acquire control of a company, or to influence who controls it." Musk has taken a passive stake in the company (though that could change in the future).

"I don't think we should be the arbiters of truth," said Dorsey in response to a farcical March 2021 congressional hearing in which members of Congress hectored tech CEOs about how (ill-defined) misinformation spreads on their platforms, "and I don't think the government should be either." From everything Musk has said publicly, it appears he aligns with Dorsey's ethos. It remains to be seen whether Musk will exercise his newfound influence for good or maintain a more understated, behind-the-scenes presence at Twitter (while continuing to roil normies with memes, of course).

Comments

[Longtobefree]

"Musk has taken a passive stake in the company"

Whatever the hell that means.
Come voting time we will learn what is passive and what is not.

[Fats of Fury]

Van Helsing turned a passive stake into an active stake.

[Rev. Arthur L. Kuckland]

We need common sense stake control

[justabill]

I like my steak medium rare.

[Don't look at me!]

3 billion worth is not passive.

[Bluwater]

Agreed. It's not like Musk to take a passive role in anything he touches, much less that in which he has dumped $3B. That's not "I want a long-term investment in my retirement" money. That's "I want a seat on the board" money.

I suspect his short-term goals are just getting used to the environment, knowing the players and trying to instill his corporate vision rather than intentions to slash and burn. He's a helluva risk taker but never rash or impulsive. That said, just 4 months into the CEO job and his promises to take Twitter more censored and opposite of what Musk has said, I can't imagine that Parag Agrawal is happy about this new development. The places to land one's million $ per year ass are pretty limited, particularly if you're a petty free-speech iconoclast.

[perlmonger]

"Twitter named Elon Musk to its board a day after it was disclosed that the chief executive officer of Tesla was the social media company’s largest shareholder."

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-04-05/twitter-names-musk-to-board-saying-he-s-exactly-what-we-need

[Utkonos]

Is Passive The New Agressive?

[Diane Reynolds (Paul.)]

Yeah, I read about his stake this morning. I'm guessing little will come of it, but I am definitely enjoying Musk's sabre-rattling on the subject.

The "Oh noes! More freedumb of speechifyin'!" screeching has been awesome.

[Mother's Lament]

What it means is that Twitter can't deplatform Musk like the Bluechecks were clamoring for recently.
He made himself unbannable.

[Vexatious]

He should push to flip so,e board members, maybe get the current CEO canned.

[B]

Yeah, Twitter sucks, but that was nice to see. Still probably nothing changes.

[Diane Reynolds (Paul.)]

"I don't think we should be the arbiters of truth," said Dorsey in response to a farcical March 2021 congressional hearing in which members of Congress hectored tech CEOs about how (ill-defined) misinformation spreads on their platforms, "and I don't think the government should be either."

Dorsey was definitely lying on one point, and probably lying on the other.

[Mickey Rat]

Yes, actions speak much louder than words.

[SIV]

Revealed preference > Stated preference

[3ducerist]

I'm really kind of hoping for a bunch of drama over this, even if it ends up being much ado about nothing.

[Bluwater]

Musk doesn't put the dirty laundry out there and fight in public unless he's attacked first. Even then he keeps it short and straight for the windpipe. More of a "do, don't talk about doing" and don't give ammo to those who will shoot at you mentality, understanding that it's more effective to let your enemies eat your dust than rubbing their noses in the dirt. And unlike Trump, don't telegraph your next move. Smile and let them wonder.

[Dudley Doesright]

Once again the real life Tony Stark wins without firing a shot. The hero of his adopted country through truth and the American way. WWPD (What will Putin do)?

[Union of Concerned Socks]

Musk is P. T. Barnum incarnate, and I hate him for that.

But at least he is a free speech absolutist. And that's an important message to be broadcasting these days.

[Don't look at me!]

He’s more like Thomas Edison. We are lucky to have him.

[Jim Logajan]

President Donald Trump told CNBC on Wednesday that Elon Musk is one of the world’s “great geniuses,” he likened the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX to Thomas Edison.

Musk is “one of our great geniuses, and we have to protect our genius,” Trump said in an interview with “Squawk Box” co-host Joe Kernen from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

“You know, we have to protect Thomas Edison and we have to protect all of these people that came up with originally the light bulb and the wheel and all of these things. And he’s one of our very smart people and we want to cherish those people,” the president said.

In a 2008 interview, Musk said Edison and Nikola Tesla, for whom he named his electric auto company, were both role models, but he preferred Edison. Tesla, the scientist, was a rival of Edison.

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/01/22/trump-likens-elon-musk-to-thomas-edison-as-one-of-our-great-geniuses.html

[Bluwater]

The big difference is that Barnum became "the greatest" by saying it over and over again till people believed it. Musk has done it by showing you.

[Tony]

Put your dick away. He's just a cringe nerd who made a good bet once.

[JimboJr]

Love the palatable hate from libs who envy an actual scientific mind for his talent and money. And even though he actively shits on their commie heroes and exposes them for the frauds they are, they line up for years to get a chance to own one of his cars.

If anyone has sufficiently owned the libs in the history of time, its Elon.

[Tony]

Elon Musk is not a scientist and he's even less a political scientist. To be fair, Edison was an asshole too, he just wasn't on Twitter.

Stop worshiping rich dude bros, though. It makes me feel embarrassed.

[5.56]

You should be embarrassed.

[justabill]

Long list of "good bets"
Paypal
Tesla
Solar City
SpaceX
Boring Company
....

[Ragnarredbeard]

You hate a guy who is successful in his endeavors? That says more about you than it does about him.

P.T. Barnum was many things, but he was honest about who he was and what he did for a living.

Elon Musk is many things, but he's been very successful at creating value and moving the needle.

[Tony]

I don't hate him, I just don't think he should have a trillion dollars and all the power that comes with it, because he's kind of an idiot.

[5.56]

An idiot that could buy your life a 1000 times over and get more guys in a week than you in a lifetime (despite him being straight).

Maybe Musk is not an idiot but instead you’re just a jealous, defeated loser nobody cares about?

[Tony]

This comment definitely says more about your values than my insecurities because it comes out and says it.

[sarcasmic]

I like that guy.

[Jim Logajan]

Elon Musk to Bernie Sanders: "I keep forgetting you're still alive,"
What's not to like?

[JohannesDinkle]

Does Musk have to grow a beard?

[Jim Logajan]

He seems to lately prefer the five o'clock stubble look, though with the purchase of Twitter stock he'll have to go with the ZZ Top/Rasputin look.

[Unable2Reason]

Don't know what he figures but Twitter is on its way down. They're chucking off half the population & the user numbers are at saturation levels, so bad investment. He must like losing money. I hope that Trump makes a major part of his campaign to destroy Twitter. If he just ends every campaign stop with the phrase, 'Twitter must die!' - that should do it.

[perlmonger]

Indications are he made about $1.2b in just the one day, since the announcement of his purchase bumped the stock price by 27%.

I'd love to lose money like that.

[Bluwater]

Perhaps he will get conservatives back by chucking the censorship. As it is now, it's basically an echo chamber and even the snowflakes get bored with repeating each others' mantras over and over again. Bring back the conservatives and give the lefties a reason to come back and explode.

Who knows... if Trump gets his Truth Social off the ground and Twitter goes free of censorship, there could be a lot of pressure put on other social media to play nice or get tanked.

And if there's anything that will convince the left that Sec 230 should be repealed, it will be Trump and Musk allowing people to say whatever they want.

[Bill Falcon]

Fire the CEO who has "old world colonialist" grudges against the wrong folks (Americans of European ancestry) and allow free speech. End the woke journalist monopoly of Twitter. And while he is at it fire the chief censor (who was on Rogan with Dorsey saying "marginalized people" have special rights)..can't recall her name but a total marxist. The only good woke is one that is running back to their eastern european or "post colonialist" country of origin and letting America be America

[Jim Logajan]

Holy cow, Musk has yet to begin flushing the Twitter system but the mere act of buying stock in it is already effective:

https://twitter.com/HeyTammyBruce/status/1511099697078882304

[Jim Logajan]

Hmm, that link went bust. Try this:
https://twitter.com/MulhollandL0ver/status/1510961901236371464?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1510961901236371464%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdennismichaellynch.com%2Ftwitter-employees-react-to-elon-musks-ownership-stake-and-emotions-are-high%2F

[Tony]

Maybe he can do to Twitter what Peter Thiel did to Gawker and then we'll at last be free.

Not free of asshole billionaires inflicting their petty grievances on the marketplace, but it's a start.

[Diane Reynolds (Paul.)]

One can only hope. I have a fantasy of being a trillionaire, buying Facebook... *cough* Meta, Twitter, Patreon, and Youtube, The New York Times, firing everyone and closing the doors.

Buzzfeed is excluded because they seem to do an excellent job of firing themselves and closing their own doors.

All one need do is cast your eyes towards anything Buzzfeed and watch it implode... with glee.

[Diane Reynolds (Paul.)]

I mean for fuck's sake, they have an "inequality desk". They have a fucking "inequality desk"! You literally couldn't make up retardation like that.

Schoofs said buyouts would be offered to journalists on the investigations, science, politics and inequality desks.

[Utkonos]

I actually don’t envy whoever sits at the Inequality Desk.
https://www.schoolsin.com/vir-9400br-x.html

[DarrenM]

Does it come with a dunce cap?

[Don't look at me!]

Poor tony, so jealous of successful people.

[JimboJr]

its the root of any good communist

[Tony]

Do you have even the faintest notion of how vast and uncaring the cosmos is? Forget not being able to take money with you when you die; the concept of money itself will one day die, along with any memory of our species.

Yeah, I'm jealous of a fucking hairpiece with a Twitter account.

[DesigNate]

As long as the billionaires have the right letter after their name, eh Tony?

[Tony]

Even if a billionaire is intelligent enough not to be a Republican, no one person is intelligent enough to make large-scale societal decisions thoughtfully, which is why it is a matter of prudence to limit people's extreme wealth.

[Brian]

Gotta correct those power imbalances, eh?

[Tony]

Yeah, welcome to America.

[Brian]

You could try something useful.

People who consume a lot more than they produce are mostly interested in consuming.

People who produce a lot more than they consume are mostly interested in producing.

It's incredibly inefficient to allocate resources away from people interested in producing and towards people mostly interested in consumption only.

An alternative reaction is to say, "Thank you."

[Tony]

This insipid dichotomy you're peddling is a self-dealing fantasy. I bet you think you're on the producer team, huh? We all consume. As to what counts as production, well, do teachers count? Do they count at $40K/year compared to $billions/year for your business mogul? Is that math perfect?

What a useless Manichean world you have concocted for yourself. It's not actually man vs. orc. It's a spectrum of man to orc in each person.

You believe billionaires deserve maximum liberty to play in the world because you believe their money reflects their virtue and worthiness to lead. It's vile, and obviously so. Meanwhile anyone who uses the wrong pronouns is to be controlled by the state down to their underpants.

[Brian]

I’m pretty sure philosophy degrees don’t count, especially from the Tulsa School, which apparently leaves you spitting gibberish on the internet all day.

I make no moral or virtue claims whatsoever. Forcing productive people to liquidate productive assets because of vague notions of “fairness” is bullshit virtue. That is, it’s resentful envy, greed, and fear looking for a virtuous excuse.

“Otherwise, however, would the tarantulas have it. "Let it be very justice for the world to become full of the storms of our vengeance"—thus do they talk to one another.
"Vengeance will we use, and insult, against all who are not like us"—thus do the tarantula-hearts pledge themselves.
"And 'Will to Equality'—that itself shall henceforth be the name of virtue; and against all that hath power will we raise an outcry!"
Ye preachers of equality, the tyrant-frenzy of impotence crieth thus in you for "equality": your most secret tyrant-longings disguise themselves thus in virtue-words!”

[DarrenM]

Now apply that same line of thinking to governments.

[Brian]

But it’s your private companeh. Why do you hate freedom and the free speech rights of corporations?

[Komal Nerkar]

Elon Musk driving the market!
Digital Marketing Future: https://www.factmr.com/report/digital-marketing-software-market

[John C. Randolph]

If I had Elon's liquidity to throw around and I really wanted to fuck Twatter up, I'd buy in loudly and publicly, quietly buy a shitload of puts, and then cash in by popping the bubble. The options would easily cover the drop in the share price.

-jcr

[Brian]

Communication is how society thinks. A democracy that votes without free speech is a society that makes decisions without thinking.

The only way for democracy to have any possibility of functioning according to its ideals is to have completely permissive thinking, so that all thoughts can be on the table before making decisions. That translates into completely free speech, and anyone who disagrees is a fascist who deserves nothing.

I’m glad someone like Musk gets that.

[Illocust]

See this is the thing about Musk. I don't like that he made his fortune in an industry with such massive subsidies from the USG, but everything he does with his fortune that I hear about is a good thing.

[jonnysage]

Lets hope he forces them to undo all the anti-free policies theyve pursued so I can finally go back to twitter. All the conservatives competitors are even more echo chamber than twitter, and they dont even have cat videos.

[justabill]

Thank goodness at least one of the ultra-wealthy in the US cares about freedom.

[5.56]

Wheres that other loser… whats his name.. SQRLSY? You would think this is the ideal place for him to spaz out.

[DarrenM]

"Mysteriously Polls Users About State of Free Speech"

Musk the largest shareholder of Twitter and polled users of Twitter on free speech at Twitter. This is deemed to be "mysterious"?