Elon Musk buying Twitter has led to some celebrities vowing to leave the social media site for fear of abuse, while others have also said they will stay and face the music.
The Tesla founder successfully acquired the social media site on Monday, April 25 for approximately $44 billion (GHS321.2 billion). As a result, Twitter will now be a privately owned company, something which would worry the American Democrat government.
Hours before the announcement, billionaire Musk urged his “worst critics” to stay on Twitter. However, many users of the site have been reacting to news of the sale by announcing that they will be abandoning their accounts.
The threat to abandon the platform is being linked to an earlier announcement by Musk that he will encourage free speech on Twitter.
The first high-profile star to say they will leave the platform was Jameela Jamil, who said she fears how the environment will change under Musk’s ownership.
Meanwhile, there have been some who, while criticizing Musk, have pledged to stay on the platform to “stay in the fight”. Others have had their accounts reactivated after being banned for rule-breaking when Twitter was owned by Jack Dorsey.
Azealia Banks and Tucker Carlston returned to the site having been restricted from posting, while Ice Cube – who has has restrictions on his account – expressed happiness Twitter had a new owner, writing: “Free at last! [Elon Musk] take off my shadow ban homie…”
Below is a full list of every person who has said or suggested they might be leaving or staying on Twitter in the wake of the Musk news.
Jameela Jamil
Jameela immediately announced her plans to leave the site, sending a final message to her followers, which included four photos of herself with her pet dog.
“Ah he got Twitter,” Jamil wrote. “I would like this to be what lies here as my last tweet. Just really *any* excuse to show pics of Barold.”
Mia Farrow
Actor Mia Farrow posted a tweet, that has since been deleted, reading: “Well if Twitter becomes even more toxic – with Trumpy-treasonous lies & all the hatred – it will be taken less seriously, and people like me will quit – for peace of mind.”
After receiving criticism from her followers, Farrow seemed to change her mind, asking Musk to “keep Twitter worthy of your previous achievements and of lawful people everywhere”.
Mick Foley
Wrestling icon Mick Foley said he was thinking about leaving the platform. He wrote after the Musk announcement was made: “I’ll be giving some serious thought to leaving [Twitter] for good in the near future. I do not have a good feeling about where this platform is heading.”
Shaun King
Civil rights activist and writer Shaun King deleted his Twitter account, saying Musk’s takeover is “about white power”.
He has since returned to the app. However, he had previously backed up his earlier tweets by writing: “The man was raised in Apartheid by a white nationalist. He’s upset that Twitter won’t allow white nationalists to target/harass people. That’s his definition of free speech.”
Amy Siskind
Amy Siskind, an activist and author of The List: A Week-by-Week Reckoning of Trump’s First Year , said she would be available to contact on Facebook “until something better comes along”.
Explaining the reasoning for her decision to walk away from Twitter, she wrote: “Whatever content I provide here goes directly towards enriching one man, who I think is absolutely awful.”
Siskind added: “People need to understand that this is no longer a public company. Every post you make here is free content to enrich one man, Elon Musk. He is completely in control and answers to no one. I don’t view him as a mentally stable person.”
J Smith Cameron
Succession star J Smith Cameron suggested that she might consider another social media site due to Musk’s takeover. She wrote soon after it was announced: “Anybody ready to find another non Musk forum, sans disinformation and nonstop stream of unfiltered hate?”
George Takei
Star Trek actor George Takei ledged to stay on Twitter in an attempt to cancel out the negativity. He tweeted: “Should this place become more toxic, I pledge to strive even harder to lift up reason, science, compassion and the rule of law,” Takei said. “The struggle against fascism, misinformation, and hate requires tough fighters. I hope you stay in the fight, right beside me.”
Rob Reiner
Rob Reiner suggested he was staying put when asking his followers: “Will [Musk] allow a Criminal who used this platform to lie and spread disinformation to try to overthrow the US Government to return and continue his Criminal activity? And if he does, how do we combat it?”
Kevin Jonas
Proving that he didn’t mind either way about the news, Jonas brother Kevin wondered if Musk’s purchasing of Twitter would see the app get an “edit tweet option”.
