Twitter 'cannot become a free-for-all hellscape,' Musk tells advertisers
- Billionaire Elon Musk sought to reassure advertisers of his intentions in buying Twitter on the eve of his deadline to close the acquisition and avoid a new court date.
- The Wall Street Journal reported that many advertisers are concerned about his speculated plans to scale back content moderation and potential conflicts of interest.
- "The reason I acquired Twitter is because it is important to the future of civilization to have a common digital town square, where a wide range of beliefs can be debated in a healthy manner, without resorting to violence," Musk wrote in a tweet.
On the eve of his deadline to acquire Twitter to avoid a new court date, billionaire Elon Musk sought to assure advertisers the platform won't turn into a place that's too unsavory to spend their dollars.
"Twitter obviously cannot become a free-for-all hellscape, where anything can be said with no consequences!" Musk wrote in a message on Twitter he posted with the words "Dear Twitter Advertisers."
The statement pushes back on the fear some progressives have expressed that a Musk-run Twitter would become overrun by hate speech and misinformation since Musk has said he would pull back on content moderation. Musk told advertisers in the note that most of the speculation about why he bought the platform "has been wrong."
"The reason I acquired Twitter is because it is important to the future of civilization to have a common digital town square, where a wide range of beliefs can be debated in a healthy manner, without resorting to violence," he wrote. "There is currently great danger that social media will splinter into far right wing and far left wing echo chambers that generate more hate and divide our society."
Musk added that he did not buy Twitter "to make more money. I did it to try to help humanity, whom I love."
Musk said Twitter should be a platform that both follows the laws of the land and is "warm and welcoming to all, where you can choose your desired experience according to your preferences."
The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that many advertisers are concerned about Musk's speculated plans to scale back content moderation and potential conflicts of interest with auto advertising, since he is also the CEO of Tesla. Some advertisers even feared he would remove advertising from the platform altogether, the Journal reported.
But Musk expressed confidence in advertising, saying that "advertising, when done right, can delight, entertain and inform you."
"Fundamentally, Twitter aspires to be the most respected advertising platform in the world that strengthens your brand and grows your enterprise," Musk added.