Thanks to Tesla, Elon Musk has not only risen to become one of the richest and most famous entrepreneurs in the world. He has also garnered plenty of sympathy points over the years. The billionaire threatens to gamble away after taking over Twitter. This could have unwanted side effects.
The car expert Ferdinand Dudenhöffer also sees a threat to Tesla's success in view of the disputes surrounding the Twitter platform after the takeover by Elon Musk. Musk must be careful "that he doesn't go too far with his Twitter escapades in a direction that robs him of the sympathy he's had so far," Dudenhöffer told the Märkische Oderzeitung. "With his autocratic demeanor, Musk is becoming more and more of a risk for Tesla and Grünheide."
When asked by the newspaper whether the "Twitter chaos" harmed the Tesla brand and the plant in Grünheide, Dudenhöffer replied: "Absolutely yes. Musk is getting more and more entangled in contradictions, rules autocratically over an information platform, has to sell Tesla shares, so as not to let his expensive Twitter takeover crash." The investment in Twitter also meant that there were no budgets that Musk might have needed for Tesla, said Dudenhöffer. This, in turn, could make it more difficult to continue the fast pace at Tesla.
After international criticism, Musk recently had several accounts from US journalists that were temporarily blocked reactivated - but not all of them. Musk announced the activation with reference to a survey of Twitter users, in which a majority of the almost 3.7 million participants had spoken out in favor of an immediate end to the locks.
The United Nations stressed that there were "serious concerns". Musk should commit to making decisions on the basis of publicly available guidelines that respect rights such as freedom of speech, demanded the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk. However, there is no end in sight to the arbitrary bans. Several of the originally blocked accounts of journalists, including the "New York Times", the "Washington Post" and CNN, could be accessed again on Saturday - but others remained blocked.
The account of "Business Insider" journalist Linette Lopez was also blocked on Sunday morning (local time). Her account was suspended without explanation on Friday. She had previously reported repeatedly about the Musk-led electric car manufacturer Tesla. On Saturday evening (local time), the account of a journalist from the "Washington Post" who reports on tech topics and Musk was also blocked.
As of Thursday evening (local time), Twitter had begun blocking accounts of prominent US journalists. According to those affected, the closures were carried out without warning. The United Nations then expressed its deep concern about the development of the online network under its new owner Musk. The federal government also criticized the closures.
On Wednesday, Twitter blocked an account that could be used to track CEO Elon Musk's private jet. Some of the temporarily banned journalists had reported on it, as well as Musk's statement that he and his family had been endangered by the sharing of location data. In several tweets on Friday night, Musk wrote that the same rules apply to journalists as to everyone else.
He was referring to "doxxing," which is the disclosure of an individual's personal information, including information such as address. "You posted my exact real-time location, basically the coordinates for an assassination," Musk wrote. He spoke of a violation of the Twitter terms of use. Journalist Tony Webster, who was also affected by the lockdown, wrote on Twitter after his unlocking that there had been no "doxxing" - "even though an easily excitable, unaccountable oligarch said so". The Washington Post also dismissed the allegations: "The Post could not find any evidence that the reporters in question had passed on information about the whereabouts of Musk or his family."
"It's a clear example that it's no longer a rules-based company," journalist Aaron Rupar, whose account was also blocked, told NPR. "It's basically a company based on Elon Musk's whims, and the terms of use depend on his daily mood." Federal Justice Minister Marco Buschmann complained that a vote had been taken to activate the accounts. "Freedom of expression is the protection of minorities," said the FDP politician.
Musk wrote a few months ago that he hopes that even his "worst critics" will stay on Twitter because that means freedom of expression. The "Washington Post" noted that after the accounts were blocked, the management of the media concerned quickly expressed criticism of Musk's actions. But everyone - including the "Post" - continued to tweet on their official accounts. "Publishers have invested heavily in staff whose main job is to promote stories on social media (...)."
The online service has developed into an important communication platform in recent years: governments, authorities and politicians use Twitter for their public relations work all over the world. Tech billionaire Musk took over Twitter in October and has been pushing his ideas there ever since.
Musk has also repeatedly taken a clear political stance, promoting the US Republicans and sharing conspiracy theories. In November, the tech billionaire unlocked the account of former US President Donald Trump. Trump has been banned from Twitter since January 2021. On January 6, he tweeted sympathy for his supporters who stormed the seat of the US Parliament. Musk also reactivated other accounts that had violated the service's usage rules.
