When people think of Twitter, they may picture meme reposts or Wendy’s annual roasts. Twitter is a social media platform that incorporates microblogging as a form of entertainment posted through tweets. A tweet is a piece of content that contains text, photos or videos that is posted on Twitter. In Oct. 2022, Twitter was bought by Elon Musk for 44 billion dollars, meaning that the platform is now under new management. However, what do these management changes mean? And, what impact will they have on the businesses and people who depend on the platform?

One of the main concerns floating around the internet recently is the mass firing of multiple employees after Musk took over. A misconception that many people have about this event was that they were fired without receiving any compensation. However, Musk stated in a tweet on Nov. 4, 2022, that the fired employees would receive full compensation for three months so they would have a source of income while looking for another job. 

Even though he has made it so those unfortunately fired would be able to pay their bills and necessities while searching for employment, it’s damaging to a business to fire a majority of employees who probably had crucial roles in helping the platform run smoothly. 

Garrett Stevens, the Sports and Entertainment Marketing teacher at Wakefield, explains how firing a large sum of people can have a negative effect on a business.

“Many employees take on tasks that are outside their job description, so you may not know what you are losing until they are actually gone,” Stevens said. “It can also be bad for workplace morale and potentially upset the dynamics.”

With the mass expulsion of employees, Twitter users are afraid of how content on the platform would be moderated. This can lead to misinformation and harmful posts staying online for longer than they should. 

One new change implemented by Musk is the way that Twitter’s advertisements are planned and their connections with those people. As a result of this, Musk has now offered businesses an 100 percent match on their advertisements if they pay more than $500,000 for them. Yet, some people think it’s unfair that only the richest businesses will get their money back.

Ms. Brewer, an entrepreneurship teacher, explains why Musk may have chosen to make this deal with more fortunate businesses. 

“I think people have to remember that ultimately Twitter is a business and their goal is to make money,” Brewer said. “Money is going to talk and obviously those with the most will get priority.”

Another aspect that has caused some controversy is the concept of recommended tweets. It can be compared to the ForYou page from TikTok or searching something on Google and seeing an ad about it on a different platform the same day. Usually, a Twitter user’s homepage would have tweets from another user that they follow or a hashtag they view regularly. Now, it can be whatever is the slightest bit related to anything a user searches. 

Caleb Gira is a senior at Wakefield who is very interested in space and astronomy. He uses Twitter to track updates of his favorite football team, the New York Giants, and local/national politics.

“The recommendations can either be good or bad,” Gira said. “Sometimes I’ll get a recommended tweet that I agree with, and other times I’ll get one that makes me want to pull my hair out.” 

Musk’s other new implementation for the platform related to paying advertisers back is the new subscription model for blue check marks. This model implies that anyone can have the blue twitter check as long as they pay the eight-dollar-a-month fee. The new model can cause there to be confusion between official brands and parody accounts. 

Randy McGrath is a junior who uses Twitter almost every day. Despite all the recent changes, he continues to entertain himself with the platform. 

“The blue verified check marks are there for a reason and another form of them will show up no matter if Twitter removes it entirely or gives it to everyone,” McGrath said. “It’s definitely a way to get a revenue stream which I’ve heard Twitter needs.” 

While it may be helpful in giving Twitter another outlet to have money coming in, there’s still the problem with differing fan accounts from the real person. 

“It’s a little ironic since Musk bought Twitter to make free speech available and now you have to pay a membership to have your voice heard on the same level as someone who already has a blue check,” Gira said. “In the sense of fan accounts, it will be harder to distinguish Harry Styles from a fan account or a brand from the people who impersonate brands.” 

Twitter overall has changed drastically compared to how it was in the early 2010s. Now, people can pay for ads and get paid back, see tweets related to their interests, buy a blue check, and much more. The changes have gathered a lot of opinions and continue to be discussed today.

“It will be a hot topic for a few months, and then the next big controversy will develop, and the focus of this issue will be lost,” Brewer said. “At the end of the day, the question is: should we prevent others from sharing their thoughts because we don’t agree with them or think they are wrong, or is allowing all opinions to be shared considered freedom of speech?”