Elon Musk Announces Twitter Update; How It Will Affect Users

Elon Musk announced more changes to Twitter after releasing the second volume of the “Twitter files,” which revealed the social media platform’s “secret blacklists.”Elon Musk, who bought Twitter for $44 billion in October, announced that the company will now begin informing users if their content is being made unreachable.

According to Musk, Twitter will also provide a way for users to appeal such cases.

Twitter is working on a software update that will show your true account status, so you know clearly if you’ve been shadowbanned, the reason why and how to appeal

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 9, 2022

The post from the Tesla CEO was published shortly after Bari Weiss. He is the creator and editor of The Free Press, and he published the second wave of so-called “Twitter files.” However, it contains all the information on how the service censored tweets from conservative commentators.

Elon Musk reveals Twitter shadow banning is real

Elon Musk, Twitter’s new owner, recently disclosed that the company is developing a new update. It is to inform users if they are “shadow banned.” However, it is different from an outright suspension of content or profiles. It refers to a reduction in the visibility or partial blocking of a user’s posts from appearing on searches and popular suggestions.

In other words, the practice nominally upholds free speech, but since no one can see their posts, it effectively renders them useless. Elon Musk made the announcement in response to Bari Weiss. He is the founder of Free Press, who alleges that Twitter employees “build blacklists” to “prevent disfavored tweets from trending.”

Twitter has previously denied shadow banning

Elon Musk’s tweet is especially important because Twitter has previously denied shadow banning, though. For example, in a blog post titled “People are asking us if we shadow ban. We do not,” former Twitter executives Vijaya Gadde and Kayvon Beykpour categorically refuted claims that they had implemented a shadow ban.

Since Musk laid off half the staff, including former legal head Vijay Gadde, who denied shadow banning in 2018, it is unclear who is currently in charge of Twitter’s “Visibility Filtering.” In a previous tweet, Musk predicted that the social media site would develop into a centre for free speech, and now he has ordered the update to go live.

Also Read: Elon Musk Responds To Jack Dorsey’s Allegation Regarding Twitter Files