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Associated Press

Billionaire Elon Musk is already floating major changes for Twitter – and faces major hurdles as he begins his first week as owner of the social-media platform.
Twitter’s new owner fired the company’s board of directors and made himself the board’s sole member, according to a company filing on Monday with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
He is also testing the waters on asking users to pay for verification. A venture capitalist working with Musk tweeted a poll asking how much users would be willing to pay for the blue check mark that Twitter has historically used to verify higher-profile accounts so other users know it’s really them.
Musk, whose account is verified, replied: “Interesting”.

Interesting
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 31, 2022

Critics have derided the mark, often granted to celebrities, politicians, business leaders and journalists, as an elite status symbol.
But Twitter also uses the blue check mark to verify activists and people who suddenly find themselves in the news, as well as little-known journalists at small publications around the globe, as an extra tool to curb misinformation coming from accounts that are impersonating people.
“The whole verification process is being revamped right now,” Musk tweeted Sunday in response to a user who asked for help getting verified.
On Friday, meanwhile, billionaire Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal said he and his Kingdom Holding Company rolled over a combined US$1.89 billion in existing Twitter shares, making them the company’s largest shareholder after Musk. The news raised concerns among some lawmakers, including Senator Chris Murphy, a Democrat from Connecticut.
Saudi sentenced US citizen to 16 years in jail over tweets, family says
Murphy tweeted that he is requesting the Committee on Foreign Investment – which reviews acquisitions of US businesses by foreign buyers – to investigate the national security implications of the kingdom’s investment in Twitter
“We should be concerned that the Saudis, who have a clear interest in repressing political speech and impacting US politics, are now the second-largest owner of a major social media platform,” Murphy tweeted. “There is a clear national security issue at stake and CFIUS should do a review.”
Having taken ownership of the social media service, Musk has invited a group of tech-world friends and investors to help guide the San Francisco-based company’s transformation, which is likely to include a shake-up of its staff.
Musk last week fired CEO Parag Agrawal and other top executives. There’s been uncertainty about if and when he could begin larger-scale layoffs.

Entering Twitter HQ – let that sink in! pic.twitter.com/D68z4K2wq7
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 26, 2022

Those who have revealed they are helping Musk include Sriram Krishnan, a partner at venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, which pledged back in the spring to chip in to Musk’s plan to buy the company and take it private.
Krishnan, who is also a former Twitter product executive, said in a tweet that it is “a hugely important company and can have great impact on the world and Elon is the person to make it happen”.
Jason Calacanis, the venture capitalist who tweeted the poll about whether users would pay for verification, said over the weekend he is “hanging out at Twitter a bit and simply trying to be as helpful as possible during the transition”.
Calacanis said the team already “has a very comprehensive plan to reduce the number of [and visibility of] bots, spammers, & bad actors on the platform”.
And in the Twitter poll, he asked if users would pay between US$5 and US$15 monthly to “be verified & get a blue check mark” on Twitter. Twitter is currently free for most users because it depends on advertising for its revenue.
Elon Musk says Twitter will revise how it verifies users
Musk agreed to buy Twitter for US$44 billion in April but it was not until Thursday evening that he finally closed the deal, after his attempts to back out of it led to a protracted legal fight with the company.
Musk’s lawyers are now asking the Delaware Chancery Court to throw out the case, according to a court filing made public Monday. The two sides were supposed to go to trial in November if they did not close the deal by the end of last week.
Musk has made a number of pronouncements since early this year about how to fix Twitter, and it remains unclear which proposals he will prioritise.
He has promised to cut back some of Twitter’s content restrictions to promote free speech, but said Friday that no major decisions on content or reinstating of banned accounts will be made until a “content moderation council” with diverse viewpoints is put in place.
He later qualified that remark, tweeting “anyone suspended for minor & dubious reasons will be freed from Twitter jail”.


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Elon Musk fires Twitter board, floats paid ‘blue check’ verification

Elon Musk has made a number of pronouncements since early this year about how to fix Twitter, and is now considering charging for blue tick status. Photo: Shutterstock

Elon Musk denies reports he is firing Twitter employees in attempt to avoid payouts

Twitter’s new owner Elon Musk. Photo: Getty Images for The Met Museum / Vogue / TNS

Elon Musk fired Twitter chief executive Parag Agrawal. Photo: Reuters

Twitter’s new owner Elon Musk tweets – then deletes – conspiracy theory about Pelosi attack

A police officer rolls out more yellow tape below the home of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her husband Paul Pelosi in San Francisco. Photo: AP

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and her husband, Paul. Photo: AP

As Elon Musk takes over, right-wingers ‘test’ Twitter with conspiracy tweets

Elon Musk says Twitter will be forming a “content moderation council with widely diverse viewpoints”. Photo illustration: Reuters

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Days after taking over, the social media platform’s new owner has made himself the board’s sole member
Meanwhile, a Saudi billionaire and his firm are now Twitter’s next largest shareholder, raising national security concerns in the US



Meanwhile, a Saudi billionaire and his firm are now Twitter’s next largest shareholder, raising national security concerns in the US.


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US Politics

Saudi Arabia

Elon Musk fires Twitter board, floats paid ‘blue check’ verification

Days after taking over, the social media platform’s new owner has made himself the board’s sole member Meanwhile, a Saudi billionaire and his firm are now Twitter’s next largest shareholder, raising national security concerns in the US

Days after taking over, the social media platform’s new owner has made himself the board’s sole member

Meanwhile, a Saudi billionaire and his firm are now Twitter’s next largest shareholder, raising national security concerns in the US