Jim Watson | AFP | Getty Images Elon Musk said he is seriously considering building a new social media platform with a tweet on Saturday. He did not share details about what the hypothetical social networking platform would look like or how it would work. The Tesla and SpaceX billionaire made the remark after claiming that Twitter does not allow freedom of speech. On Friday, Musk wrote on Twitter: “As Twitter functions as the city’s de facto public square, failure to uphold the principles of freedom of speech is fundamentally undermining democracy. What needs to be done?” Keep asking if you need a new platform. In another tweet on Friday, Musk said “freedom of speech is essential for a functioning democracy” and questioned whether Twitter “strictly adheres to this principle”. Twitter, which claims to be committed to freedom of expression, did not immediately respond to a request from CNBC for comment.
Regulator control
Tesla CEO does not like the fact that his tweets are scrutinized by regulators. Musk was summoned by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in November after asking his Twitter followers if he should sell a 10% stake in Tesla – causing shares to fall. In February, Musk accused the Securities and Exchange Commission of “harassment” and of making a concerted effort to “psychotic” his right to freedom of speech. He tried to cancel the summons, but the SEC said last week: “Musk’s proposal to withdraw is procedurally flawed and virtually worthless.” The regulator told a judge that Musk’s tweets about Tesla would continue to be a reasonable subject for government inquiry, even if the court rejects a 2018 agreement with the SEC, which means Musk must be approved. by other Tesla executives before tweeting about the Company.
Following in Trump’s footsteps?
Musk would not be the first person to abandon the established social media platforms and create their own. Former United States President Donald Trump launched Truth Social in February as part of the Trump Media and Technology Group. Trump has been banned from Twitter since January 2021. “There seems to be a tendency for wealthy people with a polarized social media presence to get them into trouble, wanting to create their own platforms,” Matt Navara, a social media consultant, told CNBC on Monday. “One can only assume that their logic is building their own social network, creating content control rules that they often violate on Twitter and Facebook.” Elsewhere, platforms like Rumble, Parler and Gettr have also launched in an effort to lure people away from Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and TikTok. Parler was removed from the Apple App Store after allegations that he was used to incite violence during the January 6 riots. It was added again in April, after the company made some modifications that allowed it to better detect and mitigate hate speech.
Creating a social network
Navarre said it is not easy to create a busy social network. “There is a reason why almost every alt-social network that has been launched in recent years has not taken off,” he said. To build a sustainable and popular social network, Navara said Musk would need huge financial capital and a team of experienced product managers and engineers. Most importantly, it must have people that others want to deal with. Most of the alternative social networks have been defined as the home of freedom of speech, Navarra said, adding that this often means hosting users whose views are the most extreme or politicized. The nature of these alternative platforms and the content they share means they often struggle to attract the advertisers and investors they need to stay alive, he added. Musk has previously stated that he and his companies are working on exciting products that are planned for years to come – but often, the proposed innovations do not materialize on time. For example, at a Tesla Autonomy Day event in April 2019, Musk said the company would have 1 million autonomous “robots” on the road in 2020. These robots do not exist yet.
