Elon Musk Finds ‘Free Speech’ to be More Than a Pastime

Clarence Page, Tribune Content Agency on Dec 21, 2022

That’s a relief, perhaps, although its meaning fell way short of clear.

But later Sunday, before much of the Twitterverse could sort that all out, that bulletin was upstaged by another bombshell.

Musk posted an open and unscientific survey in which he invited Twitter users to say whether he should step down as head of the company — less than two months after its purchase.

Whoa! If Musk hoped for a resounding vote of confidence, it was not to come. Instead, 57% of the 17 million who voted said he should go. In other words, the support for Musk was about as enthusiastic as the Dec. 11 San Francisco comedy club crowd that booed him in a surprise guest appearance with Dave Chappelle. Applause was almost drowned out by the resounding boos. Tough crowd.

Musk’s sad poll results were followed by another tweet: “As the saying goes, be careful what you wish, as you might get it.”

Indeed, if Musk thought running Twitter would be a snap after his earlier successes with solar power, electric cars, space travel and other ambitious endeavors, well, the world isn’t that simple.

The First Amendment protects content providers from government interference with speech and the press, but it doesn’t protect private companies from poisoning their own consumer appeal with an anything-goes policy that turns their content into a digital garbage dump.

It is sobering to compare the “censorship” complaints of our often-rowdy American internet trolls with those in countries where press and speech freedoms face more serious attacks.

I’m reminded of how the number of journalists jailed around the world for doing their jobs set a new record this year for the second year in a row, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists, on whose board I am a member. Some 363 journalists were deprived of their freedom as of Dec. 1, a new global high that beats last year’s record high by 20% — and it’s getting worse.

With that in mind, I welcome Elon Musk to the world of media, even as he finds being an owner to be less fun than just being a tweeter.

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(E-mail Clarence Page at cpage@chicagotribune.com.)