Elon Musk set to become number-one influencer on Twitter

2 years ago 45

By Joe Tidy

Cyber newsman

Tuesday, 17 January 2023 is the time analysts foretell Elon Musk volition go the number-one influencer connected Twitter.

With 120 cardinal followers, his account, @ElonMusk, is already the 2nd astir followed, aft @BarackObama, the erstwhile US president's, which has 130 million.

And pursuing a meteoric emergence successful the period since helium bought Twitter, Mr Musk's volition inevitably overtake, statisticians astatine Social Blade say.

This volition beryllium an unprecedented moment.

The social-media manufacture has ne'er earlier seen a level with a main enforcement who is besides its biggest personality.

So if Mr Musk is to go some Twitter's main enforcement and its "chief influencer", what are the implications - for the billionaire and for the website?

BBC News has asked experts for their thoughts connected 3 cardinal statistics.

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Musk is gaining 270,000 followers a time

In spite of caller controversies, Mr Musk's popularity connected Twitter is undeniable and growing.

Over the past 12 months, helium has gained 268,303 followers a day, connected average, according to Social Blade, and mislaid followers connected lone 5 days, which tin each beryllium linked to quality events.

He mislaid astir 200,000 connected 12 November, erstwhile large occupation cuts were announced astatine Twitter - and arsenic helium is apt to person gained caller followers that time too, the existent fig who unfollowed him indispensable person been overmuch higher.

"Elon Musk is present the main quality connected Twitter," social-media commentator Matt Navarra says.

"In immoderate ways, having a CEO who is simply a large influencer connected the level has immoderate advantages due to the fact that it makes him precise accessible to people."

Very fewer social-media main executives are large influencers connected their ain websites.

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Meta main enforcement Mark Zuckerberg is besides a personage - but not an progressive poster connected Facebook, Mr Navarra says, and his posts are much firm successful tone.

Twitter being inextricably linked to Mr Musk - a divisive quality - could beryllium a occupation for Twitter.

"He is precise antagonistic and inflammatory and, immoderate mightiness adjacent say, rather toxic," Mr Navarra says. "And for brands, helium mightiness beryllium seen arsenic perchance precise dangerous."

Emerging-technology advisor Kate Baucherel says: "Wrapping the property of the CEO into the property of the level compromises immoderate neutrality oregon diversity. A achromatic antheral US-resident does not correspond the world."

Musk is tweeting 70% much since buying Twitter

Already a prolific tweeter, Mr Musk has been posting 76% much often since buying the platform, according to Social Blade.

On Tuesday, 22 November, helium fired disconnected 75 abstracted tweets, either arsenic posts, replies oregon retweets. This is simply a grounds for him.

"It's large to person a CEO who uses the product," a erstwhile elder merchandise manager astatine Twitter, who wishes to stay anonymous, says.

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And it should not impede Mr Musk's absorption of the company.

But helium says: "I deliberation radical who tweet a batch are addicted - and perchance narcissistic. No azygous idiosyncratic has capable absorbing things to accidental to the full satellite to tweet much than 5 times a day."

On mean Mr Musk is present tweeting erstwhile each 15 minutes during mean waking hours. Sometimes helium posts astatine antithetic times though including astatine 02:00.

The experts we spoke to each agreed that having a CEO immersed successful his oregon her level tin beryllium a bully happening but each agreed that the benignant of contented Mr Musk is posting could beryllium problematic.

Recent tweets person included intersexual imagery and swearing. And, responding to critics saying helium was sidesplitting Twitter, helium posted an adaptation of a meme of a antheral smiling astatine a graveside during a funeral.

Mr Navarra says Mr Musk is simply a immense engagement operator for Twitter and his caller tweets person brought successful a important fig of caller users oregon reactivated aged ones.

"We lone person to look backmost to different quality that shares an alarming magnitude of similarities... with Elon Musk, which is Donald Trump," helium says.

"Trump was besides a immense operator of enactment and engagement from his tweets and I'm definite that was a payment to Twitter.

"But I would besides accidental he's astir apt a nett antagonistic successful presumption of the problems it brought with it for contented moderation and toxic content.

"Elon Musk is having a akin effect connected the platform."

Twitter permanently suspended President Trump aft the storming of the US Capitol building, successful Washington, successful January 2021, citing "the hazard of further incitement of violence".

Mr Musk reinstated his relationship connected 19 November, pursuing a canvass of Twitter users, though Mr Trump has not subsequently tweeted.

Musk follows lone 129 people

While gaining 8.6 cardinal followers since buying Twitter, Mr Musk himself has followed lone six caller radical successful that clip - bringing the full helium follows to 129.

Twitter laminitis Jack Dorsey followed astir 3,500 radical erstwhile helium was main executive. Former president Barack Obama follows 570,000.

And commentators accidental pursuing truthful fewer limits Mr Musk's presumption of what radical are talking astir connected the societal network

Image source, Getty Images

"He has nary thought what the acquisition of mean users is," the erstwhile Twitter manager says.

"For example, helium ne'er sees ads - due to the fact that we bounds advertizing served to the apical 1,000 oregon truthful users. So helium wouldn't person understood that portion of the merchandise earlier helium bought it."

Mr Musk reportedly told Twitter's selling squad adverts should "look similar tweets", erstwhile the company's ads already were tweets.

The erstwhile Twitter manager besides says Mr Musk's skewed acquisition connected the tract arsenic a apical influencer whitethorn forestall him knowing however to amended it and turn it.

Twitter is smaller than different societal networks and "average clip spent was a terrible constraint to our maturation and ads business".

"People who are committed users walk a batch of clip connected the tract - but they request to find a mode to summation the clip that the masses spend," the erstwhile Twitter insider says.

Every clip Mr Musk logs into his account, helium is greeted with notifications making him consciousness bully and privation to enactment connected the site.

But for astir users, this is not the case.

Growing the fig of Twitter users to a cardinal is 1 of Mr Musk's cardinal goals.

Now, determination are astir 300 cardinal - which, astatine the existent rate, is the fig of followers Mr Musk himself volition person successful 2 years' time, according to Social Blade projections.

Timeline: Musk’s turbulent Twitter takeover

‘Chief Twit’ takes control

27 October 2022

Musk completes his $44bn (£38.1bn) takeover of Twitter, instantly firing a fig of the company’s apical executives and tweeting "the vertebrate is freed".

Before officially taking complaint of the company, Musk changed his Twitter illustration to work "Chief Twit" and turned up to Twitter HQ successful San Francisco carrying a sink, saying: "Let that descend in!"

Pledge made implicit hatred speech

28 October

Musk responds to concerns that helium volition loosen regulations astatine the institution governing hatred code and misinformation by saying he’s "not yet made immoderate changes". He adds that a caller "content moderation assembly with wide divers viewpoints" volition conscionable earlier immoderate argumentation changes.

Platform battles ‘trolling campaign’

29 October

After a surge successful tweets containing racist language, Twitter’s caput of spot and information says: "Hateful behaviour has nary spot here." Yoel Roth says the institution is taking enactment against users "involved successful this trolling campaign" to marque Twitter harmless and welcoming for everyone.

Musk shares inaccurate story

30 October

Musk tweets an nonfiction containing a fig of inaccuracies astir an onslaught connected the hubby of US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi by a hammer-wielding intruder. The tract has a past of publishing inaccurate stories and Musk aboriginal deletes the tweet aft a backlash.

Trump instrumentality dismissed - for now

31 October

With conscionable implicit a week to spell earlier the US midterm elections, Musk responds to questions astir whether helium volition reinstate erstwhile President Donald Trump’s relationship connected Twitter by tweeting: "If I had a dollar for each clip idiosyncratic asked maine if Trump is coming backmost connected this platform, Twitter would beryllium minting money!"

Later that day, Musk attended a halloween enactment successful New York and posed for photographs wearing a "Devil’s champion" costume.

Criticism implicit subscription service

1 November

Following reports that Twitter volition statesman charging users to person verified accounts, Musk responds to disapproval from writer Stephen King by saying: "We request to wage the bills somehow!".

Musk moves to chopped unit numbers

4 November

Employees astatine the institution statesman receiving emails entitled "Your Role astatine Twitter" informing them whether they person mislaid their jobs. Responding to quality astir the layoffs, Musk says "unfortunately determination is nary prime erstwhile the institution is losing implicit $4M/day".

Yoel Roth, the caput of spot and safety, said 50% of the company’s astir 8,000 employees had been laid disconnected but sought to reassure users and advertisers that the platform’s moderation capableness remained intact.

Twitter laminitis breaks silence

5 November

Twitter co-founder and ex-CEO Jack Dorsey breaks his soundlessness implicit the Musk takeover to apologise to unit who person mislaid their jobs, saying: "I ain the work for wherefore everyone is successful this situation: I grew the institution size excessively quickly."

Crackdown connected parody accounts

6 November

Musk announces that Twitter accounts impersonating radical without being intelligibly labelled a parody volition beryllium permanently suspended - a alteration to the erstwhile process erstwhile accounts were fixed a informing first.

A fig of accounts that changed their sanction to "Elon Musk" and mocked the billionaire had already been suspended oregon placed down a informing sign.

Warnings astir Twitter’s survival

9 November

In his archetypal email to Twitter staff, Musk warns that the "economic representation up is dire" and adds: "Without important subscription revenue, determination is simply a bully accidental Twitter volition not past the upcoming economical downturn."

Meanwhile, aft the motorboat of the $8-a-month Twitter Blue subscription, which gives paying users a bluish tick, a slew of parody accounts that look to beryllium verified emerge, including a fake George W Bush relationship that tweets: "I miss sidesplitting Iraqis".

Key unit permission company

10 November

More high-profile unit quit, including caput of spot and information Yoel Roth and main information serviceman Lea Kissner.

Twitter Blue rollout enactment connected hold

11 November

The enactment to subscribe to Twitter Blue disappears aft its archetypal bumpy roll-out. Musk aboriginal confirms that the motorboat of the work has been enactment backmost to the extremity of November "to marque definite that it is stone solid".

Musk cuts down connected contractors

12 November

Reports successful US media accidental thousands of contractors who had been moving for Twitter person had their contracts terminated. Technology quality tract Platformer says arsenic galore arsenic 80% of its 5,500 contractor workforce were laid disconnected successful the determination but the institution made nary authoritative announcement.

Staff told: Be hardcore oregon leave

16 November

In a late-night email to each Twitter staff, Musk says employees indispensable perpetrate to a "hardcore" civilization of moving "long hours astatine precocious intensity" oregon permission the company.

Company offices abruptly closed

17 November

In a astonishment announcement, Twitter says its institution offices volition beryllium closed temporarily. The determination comes amid reports that ample numbers of Twitter unit had resigned.

Responding to fears the level was astir to unopen down owed to losing cardinal staff, Musk tweeted: "The champion radical are staying, truthful I’m not ace worried."

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