Twitter Blue is coming back—with more colors and assurances from Musk

Reuters reviewed an email to advertisers saying Twitter Blue is back Friday.

See full article...

 

[SeanJW]

Elton John is the latest high-profile user to quit Twitter, and it won't end there.

Candle in the Wind would be wasted here (it's far better than Twitter deserves), but it's an appropriate theme....

 

[Dietche]

So Twitter is “the mainstream”, and Elon Musk bought “the mainstream” and now he dictates what is “the mainstream” and can bestow (or rent for $7-11/mo.) “mainstream” membership, and that’s how any of this works?

Right.
Because "mainstream" is the new "hardcore", which was the new "OMG bots", which was the new "freeze peach", which was the new "peach tree dish", which was the new "covefefe", which was the new "tots N pears".

It's exhausting as fuck keeping up with all their shifting goal posts while they chant their cray cray, I tell ya.
WHEW. wipes brow

 

[Dietche]

S&P suspended Twitters credit rating.

That deserved more attention, IMHO, because, gahdahm, Christmas came fucking early!
Oh to be a fly on the wall when Musk got THAT news, omg omg omg!!!

TYVM, Mardaneus, for sharing that delectable morsel

 

[xoe]

Elton John is the latest high-profile user to quit Twitter, and it won't end there.

Musks response, while clearly an invitation to provide troll material looked like begging.

 

[co-lee]

That deserved more attention, IMHO, because, gahdahm, Christmas came fucking early!
Oh to be a fly on the wall when Musk got THAT news, omg omg omg!!!

TYVM, Mardaneus, for sharing that delectable morsel

I had not heard this.

Twitter faces significant challenges as advertisers have balked at promoting their products and services since its acquisition by billionaire Elon Musk, pushing credit ratings agencies to pull their ratings.

The $44 billion takeover by Musk, who also serves as CEO of Tesla, has been met with a flurry of rash decisions such as the immediate layoffs of 50% of its workforce, attempts to generate revenue by allowing anyone to pay for its infamous blue checkmark that was later rescinded and allowing racist, discriminatory accounts to post tweets again.

S&P Global Ratings withdrew its 'B-' long-term issuer credit rating of the social media company on Dec. 2 due to a "lack of sufficient information to maintain the rating," the company said.

The ratings agency also withdrew its 'B-' issue-level rating on the company's senior unsecured debt.

https://www.thestreet.com/technology/twitter-faces-credit-challenges-ratings-pulled

 

[Mardaneus]

That deserved more attention, IMHO, because, gahdahm, Christmas came fucking early!
Oh to be a fly on the wall when Musk got THAT news, omg omg omg!!!

TYVM, Mardaneus, for sharing that delectable morsel

Keep in mind that this is them stating "We need more information and at the moment expect to get this information fairly soon." not a downgrade, that'll happen if they do not get that information.

Got a non paywalled report here: https://fortune.com/2022/12/02/twitter-credit-rating-withdrawn-s-and-p-lack-of-information/

 

[Alfonse]

Keep in mind that this is them stating "We need more information and at the moment expect to get this information fairly soon." not a downgrade, that'll happen if they do not get that information.

Got a non paywalled report here: https://fortune.com/2022/12/02/twitter-credit-rating-withdrawn-s-and-p-lack-of-information/

So, this seems to be a temporary hiccup due to not getting enough info to reassess Twitter's credit rating. That suggests that the people they would normally have contacted about that didn't respond. Maybe because they were laid off or just really busy.

But the main thing it shows is general chaos and mismanagement. There are some people who you don't pick up the phone for. Credit rating agencies are not one of them.

 

[terrydactyl]

Yeah, I'm a bit confused. I would've expected the mainstream to be in the top 10 social media sites, which Twitter doesn't even reach.

It was in the top 10 as of last month. How that plays out is yet to be seen.

 

[SeanJW]

It was in the top 10 as of last month. How that plays out is yet to be seen.

It's number 17.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_social_platforms_with_at_least_100_million_active_users
Those numbers are all dated of course (no-one's keeping a live count) and difficult to compare as they count for their own metrics not for comparison, but the relative places don't shuffle too much. It might have just passed Pinterest if you count all users for example, and not just the mDAU (ie. the ones advertisers pay for).

 

[CrystalCowboy]

Elon Musk: I Love Leaks. Also, I’ll Sue If You Leak

Amid the Twitter Files, in an email to employees, Musk warns of legal action against those who violate their NDAs

 

[buzzword]

If only Albert Einstein were still alive. Then he could take a break from figuring out how the universe works to address more important things like how to "fix" Twitter.

 

[monkeyrun]

That deserved more attention, IMHO, because, gahdahm, Christmas came fucking early!
Oh to be a fly on the wall when Musk got THAT news, omg omg omg!!!

TYVM, Mardaneus, for sharing that delectable morsel

Elon can sell spaceX and Tesla to cover Twitter's expenses.

 

[Derecho Imminent]

Keep in mind that this is them stating "We need more information and at the moment expect to get this information fairly soon." not a downgrade, that'll happen if they do not get that information.

Got a non paywalled report here: https://fortune.com/2022/12/02/twitter-credit-rating-withdrawn-s-and-p-lack-of-information/

My take - 3 possibilities:
1. They decline to rate because the information is not forthcoming
2. They decline to rate because even with all the financial data they could get Musk is just a loose canon and the risks cannot be calculated.
3. They rate it at lowest junk bond level.

 

[dragoninnaMINI]

We're going to need some more time to digest the implications of The Twitter Files.

How a crazy right-wing nutjob can cherry-pick some churnalists to go through a company's internal documents, fire lawyers who try to shield the company from liability in the process, and "reveal" things that were already public information five years ago. And yet somehow people act like there are damning revelations in all of that other than "Elon Musk is maliciously stupid." That deserves its own write-up, but we're not at a point where the full story is available yet.

So please, Twitter Files-philes, be patient. Good journalism takes time.

"Churnalists"

Had to upvote for this neologism alone, but it stands for the rest of your post. :nods in agreement:

 

[dragoninnaMINI]

The coping and seething in the Ars comment section is hilarious.

Ignoring for a moment that Twitter engagement is through the roof after Elon Musk took over, let's focus on the following simple fact:

Whatever happens to Twitter in the future, it doesn't undo the fact that, in the very recent past, Twitter was a major asset for the left, since the previous Twitter management would selectively amplify or shadowban voices based on political affiliation, helping the left control the discourse in a major way. An asset you don't have anymore.

Something tells me you don't really care about what happens to Twitter in the future (it's Elon Musk's money, not yours), you are instead coping for what Twitter did for the left in the past that it doesn't do anymore. The intentional misspellings of Elon Musk's name in other posts is the "seething" part of "coping and seething", in case you were wondering.

But anyway, if people like a space full of "hall monitor" types and selective amplification or shadowbanning of voices based on political affiliation, Mastodon is right there. Let's see if anyone goes there. But keep in mind that Twitter made its name and userbase before the whole selective amplification or shadowbanning of voices based on political affiliation was a thing...

"coping"? I don't think that word means what you think it means. :shakes head: I hope MUSKmELON and/or Russia is paying you a living wage but they should probably make sure you can use colloquial English correctly before they set you loose to post FUD on the wider interwebz.

 

[Chemical Tribe]

"coping"? I don't think that word means what you think it means. :shakes head: I hope MUSKmELON and/or Russia is paying you a living wage but they should probably make sure you can use colloquial English correctly before they set you loose to post FUD on the wider interwebz.

Haha melon tusk.
https://hub.fosstodon.org/assets/images/melon-tusk.webp

 

[Bilateralrope]

So Twitter is “the mainstream”, and Elon Musk bought “the mainstream” and now he dictates what is “the mainstream” and can bestow (or rent for $7-11/mo.) “mainstream” membership, and that’s how any of this works?

I think that was his plan at one point. It's not working because he's the one trying to implement it.

Elon Musk: I Love Leaks. Also, I’ll Sue If You Leak

Finally we have something interesting in the Twitter files

 

[wxid]

Elton John is the latest high-profile user to quit Twitter, and it won't end there.

The huge number of pro-Musk replies to Elton's announcement is ... disheartening.

 

[Deleted member 859859]

“
Advertisers may not be so easily persuaded back to the platform, however. While Musk has been moving to convince advertisers that Twitter is a safe place to run ads, today three members of Twitter’s Trust and Safety Council—Eirliani Abdul Rahman, Anne Collier, and Lesley Podesta—resigned. Their letter said, “contrary to claims by Elon Musk, the safety and wellbeing of Twitter’s users are on the decline.” They pointed to reported spikes in hate speech, Musk’s reinstatement of banned accounts, and the decline in content moderation staff as reasons to distance themselves from the platform.

“A Twitter ruled by diktat is not a place for us,” their letter states, while claiming that Musk has not acknowledged the council—which in 2019 included more than 40 experts and organizations—since he took over.”

Why only 3 out of 40? Why didn’t the rest join them and make a statement?

 

[graylshaped]

The huge number of pro-Musk replies to Elton's announcement is ... disheartening.

He did say there were a lot of bots out there. Plus, teh anti-gay thing Musk is promoting? This is, as you say, disheartening. A whole lot of poopyheads are out there.

 

[monkeyrun]

The huge number of pro-Musk replies to Elton's announcement is ... disheartening.

nah. I assume at least half of those a bots or elon stans with multiple accounts.

 

[graylshaped]

nah. I assume at least half of those a bots or elon stans with multiple accounts.

37% of the staff retained at Twitter retained are charged with either actively trolling, or with boosting pro-Musk accounts.

I totally made that number up. But prove me wrong.

 

[graylshaped]

“
Advertisers may not be so easily persuaded back to the platform, however. While Musk has been moving to convince advertisers that Twitter is a safe place to run ads, today three members of Twitter’s Trust and Safety Council—Eirliani Abdul Rahman, Anne Collier, and Lesley Podesta—resigned. Their letter said, “contrary to claims by Elon Musk, the safety and wellbeing of Twitter’s users are on the decline.” They pointed to reported spikes in hate speech, Musk’s reinstatement of banned accounts, and the decline in content moderation staff as reasons to distance themselves from the platform.

“A Twitter ruled by diktat is not a place for us,” their letter states, while claiming that Musk has not acknowledged the council—which in 2019 included more than 40 experts and organizations—since he took over.”

Why only 3 out of 40? Why didn’t the rest join them and make a statement?

Advisory "boards" don't really pay attention. They get paid, if they get paid, or they pad their resumé, though this one seems a dubious honor for them to keep. "Elon Musk likes me!" is not something I want on my resumé. He can cut me a check if he wants, Our cars are eight years old, after all. It won't make me like him more, but at some point we need new cars.

 

[fractl]

Elon Musk: I Love Leaks. Also, I’ll Sue If You Leak

Is there a non-paywalled link?

 

[MarcoIt]

People made fun of Musk for paying 44B$ to buy an overvalued social media platform, but it's a cheap price to pay to meddle with US politics going forward.
The selective leaks of debatable moderation strategy by Twitter execs give Musk a lot of power in shaping the narrative and that is very dangerous. He is using the platform to gain political leverage, either by threatening current Dem administration or helping De Santis get elected in 2024.

 

[Bilateralrope]

People made fun of Musk for paying 44B$ to buy an overvalued social media platform, but it's a cheap price to pay to meddle with US politics going forward.
The selective leaks of debatable moderation strategy by Twitter execs give Musk a lot of power in shaping the narrative and that is very dangerous. He is using the platform to gain political leverage, either by threatening current Dem administration or helping De Santis get elected in 2024.

That assumes that Twitter will still be functioning in 2024

So far, the leaks have been nothing that wasn't already public knowledge. Keep leaking big nothings like that and people will pay less attention if he ever leaks something interesting. If there even if something that big in there.

 

[Static and Noise]

37% of the staff retained at Twitter retained are charged with either actively trolling, or with boosting pro-Musk accounts.

I totally made that number up. But prove me wrong.

I can't. Your logic is imeccable and the math checks out. So, it's official. 37% of Twitter staff just there to troll and boost Elon. Wow!

 

[RodneyWS1977]

Any thoughts on how the $4 upcharge on the iPhone will go down? Apple seems pretty clear that's against the ToS so will they pull the app our bend to Elon?

 

[ranthog]

“
Advertisers may not be so easily persuaded back to the platform, however. While Musk has been moving to convince advertisers that Twitter is a safe place to run ads, today three members of Twitter’s Trust and Safety Council—Eirliani Abdul Rahman, Anne Collier, and Lesley Podesta—resigned. Their letter said, “contrary to claims by Elon Musk, the safety and wellbeing of Twitter’s users are on the decline.” They pointed to reported spikes in hate speech, Musk’s reinstatement of banned accounts, and the decline in content moderation staff as reasons to distance themselves from the platform.

“A Twitter ruled by diktat is not a place for us,” their letter states, while claiming that Musk has not acknowledged the council—which in 2019 included more than 40 experts and organizations—since he took over.”

Why only 3 out of 40? Why didn’t the rest join them and make a statement?

That is pretty easy. A lot of people will try to stay with things and try to make them better. Or they'll hope Musk does better (hint: he won't).

 

[charliebird]

People made fun of Musk for paying 44B$ to buy an overvalued social media platform, but it's a cheap price to pay to meddle with US politics going forward.
The selective leaks of debatable moderation strategy by Twitter execs give Musk a lot of power in shaping the narrative and that is very dangerous. He is using the platform to gain political leverage, either by threatening current Dem administration or helping De Santis get elected in 2024.

That doesn't even quite fit because he's so obvious about it. If that was his plan, then he should have been more subtle about the whole thing and quietly place his thumb on the scale.

 

[robert.walter]

Oddly, I actually believe Musk about the engagement levels. Because it tracks perfectly with that human desire to have a front row seat to watch the train plunge over the cliff into the hurricane-caused burning oil spill. I mean, who DOESN'T want to watch that live?

But give it a couple of months. As people get tired of the constant drama and as the holiday bills set it, people are, by and large, going to find other things to watch.

And besides, none of the current levels of engagement get Musk anywhere near his next vig payment.

(I know it was but a typo of vig for big but just the same…)

You can pay the bank, or you can pay Vig.

But if you pay the bank and don’t pay Vig, you can pay the piper.

Because, now or later, Vig always gets his cut.

 

[Mardaneus]

The first problem is assuming there is only one problem.

I also can't count .
Depending on what you view as one problem I list as many as 4, 6, 7 or even 10 problems.

(I know it was but a typo of vig for big but just the same…)

You can pay the bank, or you can pay Vig.

But if you pay the bank and don’t pay Vig, you can pay the piper.

Because, now or later, Vig always gets his cut.

Nice rhyme but vig isn't wrong. It is slang in the US for interest on a loan (a contraction of vigorish).

 

[robert.walter]

I'm so hardcore, I generate my own magnetic field (suck on that, Blood Sucking Muskito!) You've still got a ways to go.

Pivoting to the article content, the gray and gold checkmark issue for color blind people could easily be solved by substituting a "G" (business) and "B" (government) for the checkmark, respectively. Not that I think Muskito cares and confusion/harm could very well be the point with this asshole.

edit: missing word.

LoL I don’t know if you intentionally swapped the B & G clarifications or did it as a trap for musk to steal and implement, but the thought of the latter is funny just to contemplate.

 

[Yagisama]

Yeah, me too. Being a space nut, I fell into his entire spiel and then his increasingly bizarre behavior made me take steps back until his final embrace of the Dark Side.
Live and learn.

The "pedo guy" stuff for the diver trying to save the cave kids was my wake up call.

 

[robert.walter]

I also can't count .
Depending on what you view as one problem I list as many as 4, 6, 7 or even 10 problems.

Nice rhyme but vig isn't wrong. It is slang in the US for interest on a loan (a contraction of vigorish).

As a native born yankee, TIL vig. I stand happily corrected.

Thanks! (But, still, may I never meet Vig.)

 

[robert.walter]

The "pedo guy" stuff for the diver trying to save the cave kids was my wake up call.

Hear! Hear! Me too!

I’m so glad Ford is taking the fight to Tesla and hitting Musk where his wealth comes from.

 

[DavidT256]

Twitter? Isn’t that like MySpace or something?

I’ve been calling it “MuskSpace” for about a month now. The deafening silence from everyone else, suggests that maybe my pun is not quite as hilarious as I have convinced myself.
Nah… I’m gonna keep trying to make it happen...

MuskSpace.

 

[chrisjames]

Musk has already done irreparable damage to Twitter that can't be undone. The more he opens his mouth the worse it gets. It will never make money at this point. He threw away 44 billion dollars due to hubris, stupidity and the need for attention.

 

[GreyAreaUK]

Musk has already done irreparable damage to Twitter that can't be undone. The more he opens his mouth the worse it gets. It will never make money at this point. He threw away 44 billion dollars due to hubris, stupidity and the need for attention.

From my perspective he only has two ways to make Twitter profitable:

1 - somehow persuade almost all the advertisers to return. With his staff cuts that may actually be enough to turn a profit.

2 - somehow persuade a lot of people to pay some sort of subscription.

(Or, obviously, some combination of (1) and (2))

For (1) to work he will have to have robust content moderation, or find a huge number of advertisers with, shall we say, flexible morals.

I can't see (2) working at all. If he tries to charge all users anything - even $1 a year - he will lose roughly 50% of his user base in one go, because I don't personally know many* people on Twitter that would pay even a penny to use it.



* I do know a few - all of them are authors or similarly self-employed artistic people for whom a blue badge might actually be of some value to them.

 

[dimathiel]

Point to one suggestion he made before buying Twitter that was related to Twitter income or profits.

Lots of comments regarding speech, who should and shouldn't be banned, and so on, but I don't recall a single expression from Musk about how Twitter would make more money. Normally, acquisitions express to shareholders how the value of the company was higher for the acquirer because of these revenue ideas over the ideas of existing management, but Musk never made that argument.

So no, in this case Musk didn't seem to care about making money.

Also, what's the revenue model for building a Mars colony? I thought that was an expression of expanding the reach of humanity. Do the people he's asked to volunteer for this endeavor know that this is a profit generating operation, and presumably they are going to have to be the source of the profits? Or does Musks most famous plan not care about making money?

Revenue model for a Mars colony is the same as the revenue model for the Brits and their colonial holdings. Harvest their resources and use them as a dumping ground for your industrial output that no one else will buy.