SAN FRANCISCO, United States — Elon Musk has taken control of Twitter and ousted its top executives, according to US media reports late Thursday, in a move that places one of the world’s most powerful forums for global dialogue in the hands of the world’s richest man.
According to the Washington Post and CNBC, citing unidentified sources, Musk fired CEO Parag Agrawal, as well as the company’s top financial officer and director of legal policy, trust, and safety.
Agrawal went to court to make Tesla CEO Elon Musk accountable for the conditions of a takeover transaction he had wanted to avoid.
The reports emerged only hours before Musk’s court-ordered deadline to complete his on-again, off-again arrangement to buy the social media network.
Musk announced on Thursday that he was purchasing Twitter “because it is critical to the future of civilization to have a shared digital town square, where a diverse range of opinions can be argued in a healthy manner.”
The billionaire even posted a photo of himself chatting at Twitter headquarters’ coffee shop.
In addition, the New York Stock Exchange announced a pending order to ban Twitter trading before Friday’s session.
Twitter, for its part, attempted to show Musk was making up reasons to leave merely because he changed his mind.
Twitter launched a lawsuit against Musk when he attempted to terminate the deal.
With a trial on the horizon, the volatile billionaire capitulated and resurrected his takeover plot.
Musk indicated that the acquisition was on track this week by changing his Twitter handle to “Chief Twit” and releasing a video of himself lugging a sink into the company’s California offices.
“Let it sink in,” he remarked.
During a recent Tesla earnings call, Musk stated that he is “happy” about the Twitter purchase, despite the fact that he and investors are “overpaying.”
Some staff who would prefer not to work with Musk have already departed, according to a worker who requested anonymity in order to talk freely.
“But some individuals, like myself, are ready to give him the benefit of the doubt for the time being,” the employee added of Musk.
The prospect of Musk heading Twitter has disturbed activists, who are concerned about an increase in harassment and disinformation, especially because Musk is renowned for harassing other Twitter users.
Musk, on the other hand, stated that Twitter “cannot become a free-for-all hellscape where anything can be spoken with no consequences.”
Musk has promised to reduce content regulation to a bare minimum, paving the path for former US President Donald Trump to return to the site.
The then-president was barred from acting because of fears that he would incite additional violence, such as the deadly attack on the Capitol in Washington, to overturn his election defeat.
