SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) – Twitter suspended Thursday the accounts of more than a half-dozen journalists who had been writing about the company and its new owner Elon Musk. Some of the journalists had been tweeting about Twitter shutting down an @ElonJet account that tracked flights of the billionaire’s private jet and about versions of that account hosted at other social networks. Twitter did not say why the reporters’ accounts were suspended. “Nothing says free […]
Tag: ELON MUSK
Musk relaunches Twitter Blue after fake account fiasco
SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) – Elon Musk relaunched a subscription service for Twitter on Monday after a first attempt saw an embarrassing spate of fake accounts that scared advertisers and cast doubt on the site’s future. The first try last month came just 10 days after Musk’s $44 billion takeover of the influential platform and a mass round of layoffs that saw company staff levels halved, including teams of workers moderating content. The relaunch […]
Elon Musk’s Twitter lifts rule against Covid misinformation
San Francisco, United States (AFP) – Twitter said it has stopped enforcing a policy intended to prevent the spread of Covid misinformation, as new owner Elon Musk — who has clashed previously with US officials over pandemic safety rules — continues to remake its content moderation policies. The move comes after the mercurial billionaire reinstated a slew of accounts on the social media network that had previously been banned for violating its content rules, such as […]
Twitter aims to diversify beyond advertising, but can it be done?
SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) – Is it a pipe dream or possibility? Elon Musk wants to diversify Twitter’s revenue stream beyond advertising, a feat none of the biggest social networks have yet pulled off. Something of a gold standard, social media ads can be fine-tuned and tailored to individual users on a mass scale, and have been particularly lucrative for Meta’s Facebook and Instagram, as well as Google. “Facebook pretty much set the standard for […]
Journalists have much to lose if Twitter dies
PARIS, France (AFP) – Few will lose as much as journalists if Twitter dies, having grown reliant on its endless sources and instant updates despite the dangers and distortions that come with it. There has been fevered talk of the platform’s imminent demise since billionaire Elon Musk took over last month and began firing vast numbers of staff. But most journalists “can’t leave,” said Nic Newman, of the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism. “It’s […]
Tesla recalls 321,000 vehicles in the US for tail light problem
NEW YORK, United States (AFP) – Tesla has recalled more than 321,000 vehicles in the United States because of a tail light issue, in the latest trouble to hit the electric vehicle giant led by controversial billionaire Elon Musk. It is the latest of multiple Tesla recalls in the United States in recent months, including one for just over 40,000 vehicles for a possible problem in the electric power steering system. “In rare instances,” the rear […]
All eyes on Trump’s Twitter account after Musk reinstates him
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) – Donald Trump has seemingly rejected returning to Twitter, but as he embarks on a new presidential campaign, will he be able to resist? All eyes were on his account Sunday for any activity, after it was reinstated by the platform’s new owner Elon Musk. Twitter had issued a “permanent” ban on Trump in the wake of the January 6, 2021 attack by his supporters on the US Capitol, as he sought to […]
Twitter exodus begins after Musk ‘hardcore’ ultimatum
SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) – Employee departures were multiplying at Twitter on Thursday after an ultimatum from new owner Elon Musk, who demanded staff choose between being “extremely hardcore” and working intense, long hours, or losing their jobs. “I may be #exceptional, but gosh darn it, I’m just not #hardcore,” tweeted one former employee, Andrea Horst, whose LinkedIn profile still reads “Supply Chain & Capacity Management (Survivor) @Twitter.” She added the hashtag “#lovewhereyouworked,” as did […]
Netflix whodunnit ‘Glass Onion’ teases Elon Musk parallels
LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) – World’s richest man. Tech tycoon. Social media mogul. Elon Musk goes by many labels, but is he also the inspiration for Netflix’s new whodunnit “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery”? In the movie, a detective played by Daniel Craig investigates a murder on the private Greek island of tech billionaire Miles Bron. Bron, played by Edward Norton, is a brash entrepreneur and self-proclaimed genius who has made multiple fortunes with […]
Twitter prank spurs unexpected scrutiny of insulin prices
Washington, United States (AFP) – A Twitter imposter cost a US pharmaceutical giant billions of dollars, but the viral prank triggered another unexpected crisis — a new wave of scrutiny of the high cost of its insulin. Authentic-looking fake accounts proliferated last week after Twitter rolled out a paid verification service, the latest in a string of chaotic developments since Elon Musk’s blockbuster $44 billion buyout of the influential platform. Among the victims was drugmaker Eli […]
No Terminator: Musk teases ‘useful’ humanoid robot
San Francisco, United States (AFP) — Elon Musk on Friday showed off the latest version of a humanoid robot that the world’s richest man said could one day eliminate poverty. An Optimus prototype wheeled on stage during an annual Tesla AI Day presentation was mounted to a small platform. The robot, which remains a work-in-progress, waved to the audience and raised its knees. “Our goal is to make a useful humanoid robot as quick as […]
Twitter stock falls after Musk abandons takeover plan
NEW YORK, United States (AFP)– Twitter stock fell Monday after Tesla chief Elon Musk ditched a $44 billion deal to buy the social media giant. The platform stock dropped 5.46 percent on Wall Street, to $34.80 by around 7:05 am (11:05 GMT). It had lost 5.10 percent before the weekend. Musk on Friday pulled the plug on the deal, accusing the company of “misleading” statements about the number of fake accounts, according to a […]





