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Tag: #Deplatforming

Elon Musk and the Battle for Twitter Explained

Elon Musk and the Battle for Twitter Explained

Image by Iván Jesus Rojas from Pixabay

You gotta love Elon Musk, whether you’re a fan or not. Or at least give him the fist bump of respect for his – going there – elan. No one has that flair for shaking up the tech landscape quite like him, and one never quite knows what his next move will be, or why.

So, what’s with Musk’s focus on Twitter, be it as a majority shareholder or actual owner? At the end of the day, does it really matter?  Forest through the trees: every tech cabalist owns a media outlet: Apple has Apple News and Apple TV; Google has Google and YouTube, Meta has Facebook and Instagram; Amazon has The Washington Post. With Twitter, power influencer Musk now has his. Period.

The Twitterverse has gone wild since Musk announced his takeover plans, especially Twitter employees. OMG! He’s threatening to restore freedom of speech! Can you imagine??? Yet, “Several employees noted in internal messages that Musk, who considers himself to be a champion of free speech, has appeared to express disdain for the use of gender pronouns,” The Washington Post reported. Or is controversy the tool he uses to shine a light on hypocrisy? Hmmm…. Read More...

The Shift in the Attention Economy

The Shift in the Attention Economy

Image by John Hain

We’ve long been under glaring misconception that the tech uberlords are the smartest guys in the room. Is it that, or were they simply the first guys in the room? Pay attention:

Big Tech has been flexing its muscles more and more, censoring, deplatforming and demonetizing its users, not exclusively for political or ‘inappropriate’ content, or simply coming up with ‘creative’ ways to bring in more for me, but not for thee – because they can.

We know that, certainly since the Age of Social, the platform formerly known as the information superhighway has become a one-way street, but things are shifting and note to self: the cabal is starting to feel the repercussions. Read More...

Meet the New Club. Not the Same as the Old Club

Meet the New Club. Not the Same as the Old Club

 

It isn’t often that a newco launches that fairly quickly captures unicorn-level attention the way that Clubhouse has. The audio-only social network, which has amassed 2M+ users and $100M in funding in just under a year after launch, seems to have raised the bar by lowering the barrier to participation, meaning, that in most rooms, anyone can raise their hand and, in most cases (depending on the moderator), participate in the discussion. It’s still in beta, so it’s currently iPhone only and invitation only: patience.

“If you could plug into a live conversation about a topic, you’re passionate about, on demand, anywhere in the world, and have an opportunity to not only listen to some of the smartest people on the subject, but also participate with them, would you?” asked Brian Solis in Forbes (The Latest Silicon Valley Unicorn, Clubhouse Raises $100 Million And Also Raises Attention To The Importance Of Audio-Based Social Networking). “…it represents an unquenchable thirst for meaningful community and engagement, especially in light of the chaos and devastation that played out in the forms of disinformation, political theater, and divisiveness across other social networks.” Read More...

Pay Attention to the Insights of Co-Founders

Pay Attention to the Insights of Co-Founders

If you’ve ever applied to an accelerator or approached (many) investors for funding, one of the most important points they check, especially in the case of investors, is team.

Above all, they want to know about the co-founders, and truth be told, most investors shy away from a startup with a solitary founder, the stated reason most often being that you should be able to find at least one person who shares your vision or passion and is willing to throw in with you. It’s also difficult to operate in a vacuum: much easier if you have that other person off whom to bounce ideas, and to keep you in check, if need be. Read More...