South African billionaire Elon Musk, Tesla’s soon-to-be CEO of Twitter, is a prominent user on the network he acquired for $44 billion. He often uses the platform to position himself and provoke, being the center of controversy.
With 90 million followers, his account on the network is busy. Among the CEOs of big tech companies — such as Jeff Bezos, from Amazon, and Tim Cook, from Apple — Musk is one of the most Twitter users, second only to Marc Benioff, owner of Salesforce, according to a survey by the Wall Street Journal.
Also according to the analysis of the American newspaper, which observed 4,925 posts by Musk, his use of the network differs from that of other CEOs. There, he counters critics, mocks opponents, voices his opinions and shares business ideas. Remember some of the controversies that Musk started or in which he was involved:
The Musk Coup
A few months after Jeanine Añez took power in Bolivia, in a maneuver in which the then senator declared herself president of the country without a congressional vote, Musk was asked by a user about his role in overthrowing the Bolivian government of Evo Morales.
“You know what wasn’t in the people’s interest?” Armani told the billionaire, “The US government organized a coup against Evo Morales so you could get the lithium from Bolivia.”
In response, Musk stated, “We’ll hit whoever we want! Deal with it.” The exchange of messages was deleted but, as it is common to say on the networks, “the print is eternal”.
End world hunger
In October 2021, researcher Eli David published a report in which UN representatives claimed that only 2% of Musk’s fortune could help solve world hunger.
In response, Musk said that if the World Food Program (WFP), the UN body linked to combating food insecurity, presented a detailed plan and showed “exactly how” to end hunger, he would sell Tesla shares and make the donation.
WFP Executive Director David Beasley reacted. And he stated that he was willing to meet Musk anywhere, “on Earth or in space”, to present the work done by the entity.
The discussion went on for a few posts, with snipes from Musk regarding the organization’s transparency. In fact, WFP “trucked” Musk’s offer and sent him a detailed plan of what it would do with the $6.6 billion it eventually received from the CEO, who never responded to the proposal.
More recently, on April 23rd, Bill Gates became the butt of Musk, who tweeted a photo of the Microsoft founder with the caption “in case you need to lose an erection fast.”
Musk criticizes journalists
In 2018, when a journalist criticized Musk’s stance on the press, comparing him to Donald Trump, he replied that “whenever they criticize the media, the media scream ‘you’re like Trump!’ elected? Because no one believes in you anymore. You lost your credibility a long time ago.”
Musk and the rescue of Thai children
Later that year, when the world was following the rescue of 12 Thai children from a cave, in which they were trapped alone with a teacher, Musk took to Twitter to accuse one of the divers responsible for the operation of being a “pedophile”.
Earlier, the diver had accused Musk of using the case for a “marketing stunt” by publicly saying he was going to offer a mini-submarine. Much criticized, the billionaire apologized.
Musk and Cryptocurrencies
On another occasion, with very few characters Musk changed the fate of the dogecoin cryptocurrency. In a few posts, he associated his image with that of the currency, leading to appreciation. In one of them, Musk published a montage based on the classic animation “The Lion King”.
In it, Musk’s face replaces that of Rafiki, the baboon half healer half shaman who introduces Simba, the prince, to the animal kingdom, represented in the montage by the dog that is the symbol of dogecoin.
Soon after, in another post, he claimed that dogecoin is “the crypto of the people”.
This was enough for the cryptocurrency’s value to skyrocket by 40%.
Musk the Reactive
Of the 4,925 tweets analyzed by the Wall Street Journal, one pattern emerged regarding Musk’s behavior on the social network: he is reactive. The billionaire has more posts in the form of reply than standalone posts. He responds to anyone, whether an anonymous critic with just 500 followers, or a UN representative with a verified account.
In interaction with Jeff Bezos, his billionaire space race competitor, Musk was succinct in the provocation: he responded to the Amazon owner with a silver medal emoji.
What is your opinion on the future of Twitter in the hands of Elon Musk? Leave it in the comments.
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