A top civil rights advocate invited billionaire Elon Musk to discuss free speech on Twitter.
The offer from NAACP President Derrick Johnson came in response to Musk suggesting people who disapprove of his deal to purchase Twitter are afraid of free speech.
“@ElonMusk, if you believe in free speech on your platform, let’s talk openly on Twitter Spaces,” Johnson wrote on social media. “People have a few questions and a few recommendations.”
Twitter Spaces is a feature on the platform that allows groups of people to hold live audio conversations.
EU REGULATOR PREEMPTIVELY WARNS MUSK ON FREE SPEECH TWITTER: ‘THERE ARE RULES’
.@ElonMusk, if you believe in free speech on your platform, let’s talk openly on Twitter Spaces. People have a few questions and a few recommendations. https://t.co/fqIBfpmJZw
— Derrick Johnson (@DerrickNAACP) April 26, 2022
Amid reports of employees at Twitter expressing dread and Democrats and others being critical of the $44 billion buyout that was announced Monday, Musk tweeted Tuesday that “the extreme antibody reaction from those who fear free speech says it all.”
The Tesla CEO later clarified that he defines free speech as “that which matches the law” and that he is against censorship “that goes far beyond the law.”
By “free speech”, I simply mean that which matches the law.
I am against censorship that goes far beyond the law.
If people want less free speech, they will ask government to pass laws to that effect.
Therefore, going beyond the law is contrary to the will of the people.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 26, 2022
Minutes after Twitter accepted Musk’s $44 billion offer, Johnson asked Musk to not allow former President Donald Trump, referring to him as “45,” to return to Twitter and to prevent the platform from becoming “a petri dish for hate speech, misinformation or disinformation.”
Mr. Musk: Do not allow 45 to return to the platform. Do not allow Twitter to become a petri dish for hate speech, misinformation or disinformation. Protecting our democracy is of utmost importance.
Mr. Musk: Lives are at risk, and so is American democracy.#Twitter #ElonMusk
— Derrick Johnson (@DerrickNAACP) April 25, 2022
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In a statement released after the deal was accepted, Musk said he wanted to make Twitter “better than ever” by implementing new features on the platform, including “making the algorithms open source to increase trust, defeating the spam bots, and authenticating all humans.” The billionaire claimed “Twitter has tremendous potential” and that he looked forward “to working with the company and the community of users to unlock it.”
??♥️ Yesss!!! ♥️?? pic.twitter.com/0T9HzUHuh6
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 25, 2022
Twitter hosted an all-hands meeting with employees after the company accepted Musk’s offer to purchase the company Monday. Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal and Chairman Bret Taylor claimed the company would continue to operate as usual until the deal with Musk closes in six months.
