EVEN before the takeover of Elon Musk, Twitter has been struggling. In 2021, the corporation recorded a net loss of $221.4 million, though this was down from the previous year’s $1.14 billion loss.
Musk also said the platform had been losing $4 million a day and even brought up the possibility of filing for bankruptcy.
But the entry of Musk, who has since initiated controversial policies, appears to have plunged Twitter further into chaos.
Some of Musk’s actions to increase Twitter revenue and save costs include cutting down spending on information technology infrastructure, and offering paid verification
But these also proved to be controversial.
When Musk announced the implementation of the paid verification plan, a flock of fake accounts started to obtain their blue badges on the site for $8. Some personalities, including religious figures like Jesus and Satan, have gotten their blue check, too.
Political magnates and former heads of state George W. Bush and Prime Minister Tony Blair were also subjected to the verification of fake user accounts – making the Twitter community question the security of the platform.
As the number of impostor profiles increased, Musk decided to put the implementation of the new Twitter Blue program on pause.
But the turmoil did not stop there.
Musk began laying off employees after he took over the company, and among those let go were the workers who had led the fight against false information, according to US media reports.
More employees left after that.
On Friday, Twitter employee Jen Hamon tweeted that she resigned from her post. She was among the employees who did not sign up for Musk’s “extremely hardcore” Twitter 2.0.
She also speculated that the IT staff had resigned from the platform since she could still access the company’s Slack messaging app.
“Did the poor IT person responsible for employee offboarding also resign? We’re 5 hours past the ultimatum deadline, and I’m still able to read the company’s Slack messages,” tweeted Hamon.
The New York Times reported that Musk appears to have attempted to regain operational consistency by sending an email calling on employees “to build a breakthrough Twitter 2.0”
It said Twitter employees have been pressured by Musk to pledge to work “long hours at high intensity” or else Musk will sack them.
Musk said in his email that those who have not signed up for the new Twitter 2.0 “will receive three months of severance.”
About 1,200 employees have quit Twitter since Musk’s takeover.
Personalities leaving, too
Some influential celebrities and influencers from the United States were seen leaving the platform after Musk’s takeover, with Gigi Hadid saying the platform is a place of “hate and bigotry.”
Shonda Rhimes, an American screenwriter, producer, and author best known for Grey’s Anatomy, was among the earliest personalities to leave Twitter. She tweeted, “Not hanging around for whatever Elon has planned. Bye.”
More layoffs
On Tuesday (Manila Time), Bloomberg journalist Kim Wagner tweeted that a new wave of mass layoffs from the sales department began last Sunday.
“Sales layoffs at Twitter started last night. Unclear how many more are impacted, but the Twitter ranks are getting even smaller,” Wagner tweeted.
Since Musk acquired Twitter, US media reports said there have been roughly 5,000 recorded laid-off workers from the microblogging site.
It remains uncertain how Twitter will recover from the chaos. With its staff’s exit down to the company’s tottering policies, what’s the future of the bird app?
Well, Musk seems to have clipped the bird’s wings.
