Twitter: How Elon Musk changed X in one year – DW

On October 27, 2022, the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, officially took ownership of Twitter Inc., tweeting, “The bird is freed.” Shortly thereafter commenced the firing of top executives, a series of controversial layoffs (about half of its 7,500 staff) and the rebranding of one of the world’s best-known brands to “X.” Launched in Silicon Valley in 2006, Twitter started out as a microblogging platform that allowed users to share 140-character posts, or “tweets.” By December 2022, Twitter had over 368 million active users worldwide, according to data from eMarketer/Insider Intelligence, and was credited with facilitating social protest movements from the Arab Spring and Black Lives Matter to the #MeToo movement. Twitter is by no means the biggest social media platform in terms of the number of active users — it trails Meta’s Facebook and Instagram and others by far — but it has long punched above its weight in terms of influence. Political leaders, companies, news media organizations, journalists and celebrities have all used the platform to communicate and brand-build among a largely media-savvy global community. Before closing his $44 billion (€41.5 billion) deal to buy Twitter, Musk proclaimed the platform served as “the de facto public town square” and questioned its commitment to freedom
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