Although Elon Musk has taken a more laissez-faire approach to content moderation since acquiring Twitter than the platform’s prior management did, he made it clear this week that he still draws the line at threatening behavior among users.
According to reports, one Twitter account targeted a group of high-profile conservatives in a post that seemed to call for physical attacks on them.
The user specifically named Chaya Raichik, who created the “Libs of TikTok” account; Jaimee Mitchell, who founded the group Gays Against Groomers; Matt Walsh, a prominent right-wing commentator; and Tim Pool, the host of a popular conservative YouTube channel.
As a screenshot reveals, the offending tweet declared that the four individuals “have been way too comfortable lately,” adding: “I personally think they should have to fear for their lives more.”
A number of other conservative users began reacting to the not-so-veiled threat, including Greg Price, who mentioned Musk in a post of his own wondering if such content is “still against Twitter’s terms of service.”
Musk later responded in the affirmative and the account was subsequently suspended.
Thank you, @elonmusk pic.twitter.com/MHtcJHhYVA
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) November 23, 2022
For those whose remarks did not reach the level of threats or other dangerous speech, however, the Tesla CEO has been far more permissive about who may use the platform.
He recently conducted a survey on Twitter in order to determine whether other users believed that former President Donald Trump’s account should be reinstated. A slim majority argued that he should restore Trump’s profile, which had been taken down in the wake of the Jan. 6, 2021, riot on Capitol Hill.
As a result of the poll’s outcome, Musk reinstated the account, which allowed all of the former president’s previous tweets to be once again viewed by other users. He has similarly restored a number of other profiles, including a personal account belonging to Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) and conservative parody news site Babylon Bee.
Musk seems willing to enact an even more permissive policy, as outlined in a subsequent Twitter poll asking users if the platform should “offer a general amnesty to suspended accounts, provided they have not broken the law or engaged in egregious spam.”
