Business
Elon Musk to provide 'amnesty' to suspended Twitter accounts
“The people have spoken. Amnesty begins next week," Musk said
November 25, 2022 4:53am
Updated: November 28, 2022 9:35am
Twitter owner Elon Musk said on Thursday that he will grant “amnesty” to accounts that were suspended from the social media platform.
The announcement comes after Musk conducted a poll to vote on whether Twitter should offer “general amnesty” to suspended accounts that have not “broken the law or engaged in egregious spam.”
Out of his more than 3.16 million users who took part in the vote, 72.4% voted “Yes.”
“The people have spoken. Amnesty begins next week. Vox Populi, Vox Dei,” Musk said about the poll’s results.
The people have spoken.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 24, 2022
Amnesty begins next week.
Vox Populi, Vox Dei.
Musk also used the Latin phrase meaning “the voice of the people, the voice of God” before reinstating the Twitter account of former President Donald Trump, whose account was banned for allegedly encouraging the Capital insurrection last year.
Twitter’s new owner also reactivated the accounts of psychologist Jordan Peterson, former professional kickboxer Andrew Tate, and rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West.
Other high-profile suspended accounts include Trump’s former advisor Steve Bannon, UK commentator Katie Hopkins, conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, and former Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard David Duke.
The move is the latest change that Musk has carried out since acquiring the social media platform. During his first few weeks as Twitter’s new owner, Musk fired top managers, implemented privacy changes, and announced new fees associated with the social media platform.
The announcement of the reactivation of suspended accounts has brought criticism from several activists, who claim that the individuals were banned for spreading harmful content and would continue to do so once reinstated.
“Superspreaders of hate, abuse, and harassment will be the only people to benefit from this latest decision by Twitter,” said Imran Ahmed, chief executive of the Center for Countering Digital Hate. “The choice for advertisers has never been starker: stick around and back Elon Musk, or protect their brands and ensure their marketing dollars aren’t used to enable the spread of hate, abuse, and disinformation.”
