Elon Musk’s Twitter is at a crossroads amid a rise in hate speech and competition

Hey everyone! It's Kylie Robison, stepping in for David as the tech journalist. Today, I'd like to share some fresh data concerning the popular avian platform.

According to Bloomberg, studies reveal a notable rise in hate speech and aggressive material on Twitter since Elon Musk took over the platform last year. Prior to Musk's ownership, derogatory language targeting Black Americans was witnessed 1,282 times every day, but this figure skyrocketed to 3,876 times per day after he assumed control, as per the New York Times.

It is obvious that these discoveries are like poison for advertisers. Twitter relies on advertisers, which probably explains why Linda Yaccarino, a former executive from NBC's advertising department, was appointed as its new CEO. Despite her expertise in advertising, it is improbable that companies such as Disney would want to showcase their ads alongside offensive language. Musk stated that Twitter's advertising earnings have dropped by 50% since the company was bought.

Following the release of Bloomberg's article, Twitter expressed strong opposition to the claim that harmful content is increasing, asserting that a vast majority (99.99%) of tweet impressions consist of positive and healthy content. According to Twitter, only a minority of content necessitates enforcement. The company highlighted its efforts to limit the visibility of problematic tweets through its "Freedom of Speech, Not Reach" approach, although it was reported by Bloomberg that identifying which tweets have been restricted is challenging for external parties. Twitter further emphasized the outdated nature of the data referenced in the article and stressed that it has already taken steps to address and enhance numerous issues through both automated and manual enforcement methods.

However, there is a broader perspective to consider. Firstly, it is important to understand that impressions, which indicate how many times a tweet has been viewed, should not be mistaken for posts. An individual who previously worked at Twitter shared with me that hate speech typically does not receive a significant amount of impressions. This is because it is often posted by random users with a mere 100 followers who engage in such offensive content. Additionally, this former staff member, who possesses extensive knowledge of Twitter's moderation procedures, suggested that it is probable that Twitter's leadership altered the definition of hate speech for the data they presented.

"I assume they have eliminated any offensive language targeting transgender or homosexual individuals from being categorized as hate speech," the ex-Twitter employee expressed, further noting that numerous prominent accounts with a substantial following and tweets that receive significant attention should have negatively affected Twitter's claimed "healthy" rating. As an example, the former employee highlighted that transphobic tweets made by conservative commentator Matt Walsh alone should have significantly impacted that particular metric."

The ex-Twitter employee mentioned that they probably also removed videos or pictures that promote hate speech. This is because Twitter is currently focusing on reviewing and approving only written tweets. As an example, Elon Musk disagreed with the company's choice to moderate a documentary called "What is a Woman?" from the conservative news outlet the Daily Wire. The documentary broke Twitter's guidelines and has now been watched by a massive 187.8 million viewers.

Clearly, the general public would have a better understanding of the situation if Musk hadn't gotten rid of the company's PR department and if the company's press line didn't respond to inquiries with an inappropriate emoji. Additionally, independent researchers now face more obstacles in verifying Musk's statements because Twitter now charges them for accessing its API, which hinders their ability to analyze his tweets. It's important to mention that Musk has lost two heads of Trust & Safety since taking control: Yoel Roth, who had to leave his home due to Musk seemingly supporting a tweet that made unfounded accusations about Roth being sympathetic to pedophilia, and Ella Irwin, who left shortly after Musk criticized the company's decision to moderate the "What is a Woman?" documentary for violating its rules.

I've been reporting on Twitter ever since Musk acquired it. I believe I've witnessed every aspect of this ongoing story. What I can confidently state is that Musk is now facing a pivotal moment, as he approaches the one-year milestone of his $44 billion acquisition in October. The world of social media is beginning to divide with the emergence of several alternative platforms to Twitter. One platform worth mentioning is Meta's Threads, which has amassed 100 million users, although it is struggling to keep them engaged.

A lot of individuals, including myself, are becoming tired of the conversations happening on Twitter. It doesn't really matter if Twitter acknowledges external studies; the fact that more and more users are opting for alternative platforms is clear evidence of their discomfort. I don't anticipate Twitter changing its direction, but it won't completely disappear either.

According to a previous Twitter executive who spoke to Fortune, it is likely that we will have separate websites catering to distinct audiences, offering different content. This can be likened to the situation with CNN and Fox News, where individuals may choose to follow both platforms or opt for the one that aligns better with their preferences.

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The blog section of Data Sheet was authored and assembled by David Meyer on a daily basis.

Apple has issued a caution in the United Kingdom about the possibility of discontinuing iMessage and FaceTime due to proposed changes to surveillance powers. The government aims to amend the 2016 Investigatory Powers Act in order to require technology companies to obtain official approval for new security features before releasing them. This is intended to prevent these features from hindering law enforcement and intelligence agencies in their efforts to monitor individuals. Apple expressed concern that this proposal would effectively make the government the sole authority in determining acceptable levels of data security and encryption worldwide.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has put a halt to one of its legal actions against Microsoft's acquisition of Activision-Blizzard, which was valued at $69 billion. This move, as described by Reuters, temporarily discontinues the attempt to prevent the deal from going through via the FTC's internal administrative law process. The second part of the FTC's approach involves their efforts in district court, where they have been unsuccessful in persuading a judge that a merger injunction is crucial.

TSMC, the largest revenue-generating semiconductor producer globally, has encountered an unfortunate setback in getting its major new plant in Arizona up and running. The main hurdle they face is the lack of proficient technical personnel, as highlighted by Nicholas Gordon from Fortune. Additionally, the high expenses involved in constructing the facility pose another challenge. In an effort to overcome these obstacles, the company is striving to relocate more skilled workers from Taiwan to Arizona and kickstart operations in the factory.

Today, the White House revealed that several prominent A.I. businesses, including Amazon, Anthropic, Google, Inflection, Meta, Microsoft, and OpenAI, have come forward with a range of voluntary promises concerning A.I. safety. Among these commitments, the primary focus is on allowing thorough examination of the companies' systems. However, one particularly noteworthy commitment is "The companies pledge to create strong technical measures that will inform users when content is generated by artificial intelligence, for instance, by implementing a watermarking system."

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