Twitter has long been described as a hellish place by even its most avid users. But under Elon Musk, Twitter has evolved into a platform indistinguishable from the wilderness of alternative social media sites like Truth Social and Parler. It’s now a right-wing social network.
In December, I argued that if we were to judge Musk strictly by his actions as the owner of Twitter, it would be accurate to call him a far-right activist. As a public figure, he has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to the right’s culture war against progressivism (which he calls the “woke mind virus”), and his $44 billion Twitter acquisition is a sign of this particular can easily be seen as an overtly political act to promote the cause of ideology. Now, under his leadership, the site itself has arguably transformed into an alternative social media platform that provides a haven for far-right influencers and advances the interests, bigotry, and conspiracy theories of the right wing of American politics. .
Early morning today, NBC News Florida Governor Ron DeSantis plans to launch his 2024 presidential campaign with a Twitter Space event with Musk. Literally, Twitter is a launching pad for right-wing political leaders. Also today, daily wireThe conservative media giant, which includes Ben Shapiro and political commentators Matt Walsh and Michael Knowles, who are known for opposing transgender rights, has announced that it will bring its entire podcast content to Twitter starting next week. And earlier this month, former Fox News host Tucker Carlson said he would adapt his prime-time programming format (a dog-whistling broadcast style known for inciting fear and inciting bigotry) to Musk’s platform. Announced.
Carlson and others daily wire Of course, Carlson lost his cable TV stable and Walsh had his popular YouTube channel monetized over transphobic comments.And while they reportedly haven’t brokered a formal deal with the platform, Carlson and daily wire It will likely use Twitter’s new subscription feature and ad revenue sharing to monetize its audience.
This should sound familiar. Twitter is basically following the playbook of platforms like Rumble. Rumble was once the go-to for canceled and deplatformed right-wingers looking for a soft landing and the promise of revenue. Similar to Rumble, which pivoted from a struggling YouTube alternative to a full-fledged far-right platform in the late 2010s, Twitter has become a popular well of right-wing shock jocks as a way to revive a financially adrift website. Looks like it’s immersed.
This move makes sense. In just a few months, Musk has actively worked to elevate certain right-wing interests. anti wake ideology. He reinstated numerous accounts previously banned for violating Twitter rules, emboldening trolls, white supremacist accounts and the January 6 defendants. Mr. Musk’s own rhetoric has intensified in recent months, moving from trolling to dog whistles to outright conspiracy promotion, culminating in his recent anti-Semitic comments about George Soros. A quick look at Musk’s replies on the site shows how much time one of the world’s richest men spends replying to far-right influencers. nod in agreement to their racist memes.
Social media platforms always reflect the values of their owners, and Twitter’s beliefs are much the same as those of lesser-known alternative tech sites. Despite appearing to bow to the demands of authoritarian governments and censor links to competing platforms, Musk, like his fellow right-wing activists, has sought to position himself as a free speech absolutist. came. Before shutting down after a failed acquisition by Ye (formerly Kanye West), Parler billed itself as a “social platform for free speech.” Truth Social, a website supported in part by President Donald Trump, says it encourages “open, free and honest global dialogue without discrimination based on political ideology.” Says. This statement comes after Carlson talked about Musk’s Twitter, claiming that “there aren’t many platforms left that allow for free speech,” and that the site is “the last great platform left in the world.” Indistinguishable. If it behaves like a right-wing website and advertises itself as such, it might very well be a right-wing website.
Twitter has so fully assumed the role of a far-right platform that it threatens to crush its competitors. When Parler shut down in April, its parent company said it “no longer reasonably believes that a Twitter clone just for conservatives is a viable business.” The reason is that it is left unspoken. Twitter has become a right-wing echo chamber.
If Musk isn’t too obsessed with garnering approval from trolls, reactionaries, and Dogecoin enthusiasts (the small remaining constituency of his site still seems to worship him) Parler’s statement should worry Musk. Right-wing alternative technology platforms may attract investors and a slew of angry new users with persecution complexes, but they are ultimately bad business. That’s precisely because they lack a way to own the only thing that fuels far-right discourse: freedom. Without actual conflict, culture wars are no fun. Although some journalists and pundits remain, many of Twitter’s prolific users are posting less and on other platforms. Social media platforms that cater to right-wing ideology eventually become tired and predictable. This is the result of similarly vocal people shaking their fists at the digital he crowd. History shows that there are many ways a social network can disappear, but the quickest way is through boredom.