Elon Musk has taken aim at Twitter’s top lawyer for censoring stories about Hunter Biden’s laptop after it was reported she’d sobbed at news he’d bought the firm.
The tycoon – whose $44bn purchase of Twitter was confirmed Monday – issued a scathing tweet in response to reports Vijaya Gadde, 48, had been crying at news of the deal.
He wrote: ‘Suspending the Twitter account of a major news organization for publishing a truthful story was obviously incredibly inappropriate.’
Musk was referring to the suspension of the New York Post’s account for its exclusive about Hunter Biden’s laptop in the run-up to the 2020 election.
Initially dismissed as ‘misinformation’ by liberal outlets and social media networks, the laptop and its contents have since been verified by many of the same publications.
Gadde – who’s described as Twitter’s ‘moral authority’ – broke down in tears on Monday, Politico reported.
She did so while briefing her team via videolink on the future of the company under Musk, following his $44 billion deal to takeover the company.
Her future at the firm now looks shaky after her latest behavior was brought to the attention of the notoriously ruthless Musk.
He is likely to slash Twitter’s policies on hate speech and misinformation, having previously branded himself a free-speech absolutist.
Twitter staff have been told their jobs are safe for the six months the transfer of ownership is expected to take.
But after that, workers like Gadde are likely to be among the first to get the boot.
Elon Musk, 50, on Tuesday responded to a report about Twitter’s lawyer Vijaya Gadde (left) crying at the news of his takeover
The tweet Elon Musk replied to is pictured, top, with the tycoon’s scathing attack on Vijaya Gadde’s behavior right underneath
She was pivotal in the decision to ban Donald Trump from the platform for inciting unrest, and also played a key role in the decision to remove The New York Post’s account when they tweeted their reporting into Hunter Biden’s laptop.
Twitter initially froze the New York Post’s main account after it published the story and demanded it delete tweets linking to the Biden articles.
It justified the ban by citing a prohibition of distributing hacked material, before backing down when the story was proven to be legitimate.
Saagar Enjeti, host of a conservative YouTube show, tweeted a link to Politico’s report about Gadde’s tears, commented: ‘Vijaya Gadde, the top censorship advocate at Twitter who famously gaslit the world on Joe Rogan’s podcast and censored the Hunter Biden laptop story, is very upset about the @elonmusk takeover.’
The world’s richest man Elon Musk on Monday secured a blockbuster $44billion deal to buy Twitter, in one of the most dramatic takeovers in corporate history
Gadde’s tears, Politico reported, were in response to concerns about how the company could change.
Twitter spokesperson Trenton Kennedy told Politico that Gadde ‘became emotional when discussing her team’s impact and the pride she feels in them.’
Having joined Twitter in 2011, she is central to the social media’s policy on hate speech, misinformation, advertising and censorship.
Musk has made clear that he intends to remove many of the restrictions currently in place, and open Twitter up as a forum for free speech.
Critics have expressed concern about how this will play out.
On Tuesday, the billionaire blasted the ‘extreme antibody reaction’ from ‘those who fear free speech’ and said it ‘says it all’ as he launched his first public backlash against the woke workers.
He said if people wanted to censer free speech further they ‘will ask government to pass laws to that effect’ but added he will not go beyond the law because it would be ‘contrary to the will of the people’.
Gadde joined Twitter in 2011 and is considered instrumental to decisions to ban Donald Trump, temporarily disable The New York Post’s account, and curb hate speech
It came after some employees reacted with horror to the ideal of working for him, claiming the acquisition was ‘dangerous for democracy’.
On Monday, after the announcement, Twitter blocked its developers from making changes to the app to prevent it being sabotaged by left-wing staff.
Meanwhile commentators from particular outlets continued to warn of the supposed issues of Musk taking command, with hosts of The View among the latest to launch attacks on the entrepreneur.
Sunny Hostin made a bizarre claim about his plans being ‘about free speech of straight white men’, while Joy Behar took a guest to task for saying Trump was ‘horrible but hilarious’ on Twitter.
Obscure left-leaning celebrities led the charge away from the platform overnight as they said they had to abandon it because his ‘free speech bid’ would end in ‘lawless hate, bigotry and misogyny’.
Rob Reiner, star of 1970s sitcom All In The Family, actress turned activist Mia Farrow, and actress Jameela Jamil were among those to moan about the future of the firm under its new owner.
But Musk silenced them on Tuesday afternoon, posting: ‘The extreme antibody reaction from those who fear free speech says it all.’
He continued: ‘By ”free speech”, I simply mean that which matches the law. I am against censorship that goes far beyond the law.
‘If people want less free speech, they will ask government to pass laws to that effect. Therefore, going beyond the law is contrary to the will of the people.’
He later added: ‘Per aspera ad astra!’
The Latin phrase roughly translates as: ‘Through difficulties to the stars!’
Jamil said she would no longer be tweeting because his ‘free speech bid’ would end in ‘lawless hate, bigotry and misogyny’
Twitter staff immediately began complaining about Musk’s takeover, including software engineer Geraint Davies
Chloe Barnes, Twitter’s lead for global curation standards, added: ‘Totally understand that this is entertainment for some. But please know that this is certainly not entertainment for me’
The Tesla founder said he wanted to re-establish the principle of free speech on the platform and has joined criticism of its moderation policies which are accused of disproportionately targeting conservative voices, but his critics claim he will allow ‘hate to flourish’.
Twitter banned any product updates that are not ‘business-critical’, with the company’s vice-president required to give approval for any to go ahead.
The move aims to prevent angry staff from ‘going rogue’, a source told Bloomberg, and comes after employees dismissed Musk as ‘dangerous to democracy’.
Twitter shares dropped 1.72% in early trading on the NASDAQ on Tuesday to reach $50.81, after surging from $45 when Musk submitted his initial bid to buy the company on April 14.
The deal is set to be completed in six months, with staff told their jobs are only guaranteed up to that point but ‘no layoffs are planned’ at the social media platform, which is highly influential among media circles despite having a smaller user base than Facebook.
Among those whining about the takeover was software engineer Addison Howenstine, who tweeted using asterisks to make the post harder to search for.
He wrote: ‘POV: You asked me why El*n M*sk is buying 9.2% of Tw*tter and getting a board seat is bad and I’m explaining why this was clearly not his end goal and things will certainly get worse and potentially be dangerous for democracy and global affairs.’
Musk’s purchase will see substantial changes, with the self-described ‘free speech absolutist’ expected to take a more permissive approach to moderation after a series of scandals including the platform’s decision to bury a story about Hunter Biden’s infamous laptop.
Musk has also suggested Twitter – which will now move off the New York Stock Exchange – could move towards a subscription-based model and a shift away from advertising which currently generates 90% of its overall revenue.
His purchase of Twitter is likely to see substantial changes implemented on the social media platform with everything from longer tweets and paid subscriptions using ‘joke’ cryptocurrency Dogecoin all within the realm of possibility.
Musk is said to favor temporary ‘timeouts’ for users who break the new rules, rather than permanent bans such as those given to Donald Trump.
Other mooted changes include blue verification checkmarks for anyone who subscribes to Twitter’s premium Blue service, which costs $2.99 a month.
Musk tweeted on Monday night: ‘I hope that even my worst critics remain on Twitter, because that is what free speech means.’
But actress Jameela Jamil, 37, said she wasn’t having it. ‘Ah he got twitter,’ she said.
‘I would like this to be my what lies here as my last tweet. Just really *any* excuse to show pics of Barold,’ she added, attaching a photo of the poodle mix she shares with her boyfriend, musician James Blake.
‘I fear this free speech bid is going to help this hell platform reach its final form of totally lawless hate, bigotry, and misogyny. Best of luck.’
Jamil has since been widely mocked by people in her replies claiming that she’s far too much of an attention-seeker to stay off the platform.
The View’s Hostin also attacked Musk’s emphasis on free speech, suggesting that he was only interested in protecting the ‘free speech of straight white men’.
And her colleague Behar blasted guest co-host Amber Ruffin for saying Trump coming back to Twitter was ‘horrible but hilarious’.
Ruffin said: ‘I think Trump is going to come back to Twitter and it’s going to be horrible, but also very hilarious.’
Behar shot back: ‘You know, I used to think he was funny, but no, he’s about as funny as a herpes sore, so I don’t think he’s funny. Do you think he’s funny anymore? He’s not funny.’
All In The Family star Rob Reiner, star of 1970s sitcom All In The Family, said he was troubled by the possible return to Twitter of Trump under Musk’s leadership.
‘Now that Elon Musk is buying Twitter, the question for all of us is: Will he allow a Criminal who used this platform to lie and spread disinformation to try to overthrow the US Government to return and continue his Criminal activity?
‘And if he does, how do we combat it?’
Reiner appeared to be referring to Donald Trump, who was banned by Twitter in January 2021 after being accused of stoking the Capitol riot.
Many left-wing tweeters fear Musk’s purchase of the firm could spell the return of Trump.
Actress turned activist Mia Farrow tweeted: ‘Well if Twitter becomes even more toxic- with Trumpy-treasonous lies & all the hatred- it will be taken less seriously, and people like me will quit – for peace of mind’. Amid a backlash from Twitter users, one critic said: ‘Do people who quit Twitter over Elon Musk HAVE TO tell everybody? Can’t they just leave?’
Star Trek actor George Takei also voiced his fears over Musk.
But he said he was not quitting Twitter, because giving a greater platform to extremists meant that moderates like him were even more important.
‘I’m not going anywhere,’ the 85-year-old tweeted.
‘Should this place become more toxic, I pledge to strive even harder to lift up reason, science, compassion and the rule of law. The struggle against fascism, misinformation, and hate requires tough fighters.
‘I hope you stay in the fight, right beside me.’ He joked that Musk was setting himself up for a challenge.
‘The problems Elon Musk will face as the owner of a social media company will make him accelerate his Mars escape plans considerably,’ he added.
MSNBC host Joy-Ann Reid was her usual cynical self while responding to Musk’s request for his detractors to stay and debate.
She declared: ‘Translation: if his worst critics leave, Twitter will be as worthless as Gab, Gettr (lol) and Truth Social. He needs y’all to stay on here so his ‘free speech’ people can harass you for fun. Because dude does not ALWAYS believe in free speech…’
Meanwhile, Leslie Miley, a former Twitter employee who has also worked for Google and Apple, said that Twitter was going ‘going to let a man-child essentially take over their platform’.
Gerard Taylor, a senior software engineer, was conflicted: ‘My current sentiment: Stock is up! YAY! But what about our company culture?’
Software engineer Addison Howenstine claimed Musk’s takeover of his employer posed a threat to democracy
Talks between Musk and Twitter began on Sunday and ended on Monday, with the social media site’s board saying a sale to Musk was the ‘best path forward’.
Twitter initially tried to block the deal, vowing to implement a so-called poison pill, but it is understood the 11-strong board was swayed by Musk’s unveiling of financing last Thursday.
The deal will see the South African entrepreneur take the social media giant off the New York Stock exchange and overhaul its policies on free speech.
As the takeover was announced, he said: ‘Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated.’
The takeover has been a rollercoaster ride and taken less than two weeks to play out, and will go down as one of the most dramatic deals in US corporate history.
Twitter staffers have made no bones about the fact that they’re not thrilled with Musk’s takeover, with conservative journalist Andy Ngo tweeting several complaints and gripes from staffers hours after the takeover was confirmed.
Geraint Davies, a senior staff video engineer for Twitter, wrote: ‘Anyone in need of a software engineer with 40 years of experience? Asking for a friend.’
Twitter engineer Jay Holler wrote: ‘For the first time, Twitter leadership includes someone that I had proactively Blocked on this platform.’
Gerard Taylor, a senior software engineer, was conflicted: ‘My current sentiment: Stock is up! YAY! But what about our company culture?’
Chloe Barnes, Twitter’s lead for global curation standards, added: ‘Totally understand that this is entertainment for some. But please know that this is certainly not entertainment for me.’
Cassie Nick Rumbaugh, a data scientist, bemoaned Musk’s alleged transphobia and wrote: ‘I’m honestly kinda terrified rn.’
Twitter founder Jack Dorsey, to the contrary, found the takeover from Musk to be exciting news.
After posting a Spotify link to the Radiohead song ‘Everything in it’s Right Place,’ Dorsey elaborated on his thoughts.
‘I love Twitter. Twitter is the closest thing we have to a global consciousness. The idea and service is all that matters to me and I will do whatever it takes to protect both.
‘In principle, I don’t think anyone should own or run Twitter,’ he added. ‘It wants to be a public good at a protocol level, not a company. Solving for the problem of it being a company however, Elon is the only solution I trust.’
He said that Musk’s goal of ‘creating a platform that is maximally trusted and broadly inclusive is the right one.’
‘I’m so happy Twitter will continue to serve the public conversation. Around the world and to the stars!’
Staff have been told that their jobs are safe for at least six months until Musk takes over.
CEO Parag Agrawal and Bret Taylor, the chair of the board, addressed staff at 5pm ET on Monday – dodging questions about whether Donald Trump would be allowed to rejoin, and saying instead that it was a question for Musk.
‘It’s important to acknowledge that all of you have many different feelings about what is happening,’ Agrawal said, according to two people who attended the meeting and spoke to The New York Times.
‘Some of you are concerned, some are you are excited, and some of you are waiting to see how this goes. I know this affects all of you personally.
‘It is an emotional day, and I just want to acknowledge it.’
Concerns about immediate job losses were allayed, with employees told that business will operate as usual until a deal closes in next six months, Bloomberg’s Kurt Wagner reported.
Staff were told there would be no layoffs ‘at this time’ – but no guarantees were provided when Musk takes over.
But in a sign of the possible internal unrest, new product launches were delayed amid fears, Bloomberg speculated, that employees could ‘go rogue’ and ‘push something or mess with the product on the way out the door.’
Ahead of the meeting, staff were asked to submit questions, and many were asking about a possible forced return to the office for the all-remote workforce. Others fretted about their shares, journalist Yashar Ali reported.
In internal message rooms there was uproar, The New York Times reported.
‘I feel like I’m going to throw up… I really don’t wanna work for a company that is owned by Elon Musk,’ one staffer said, according to their reporter Talmon Smith.
Smith’s source told him that it was ‘absolutely insane’ in the internal chat rooms.
Another Twitter employee reportedly complained: ‘I don’t really know what I’m supposed to do… oh my god, my phone’s been blowing up… We have a meeting about it at 5pm… the CEO is going to address everyone about it (it=elon)’.
‘I hate him, why does he even want this?’
The billionaire agreed to pay shareholders $54.20 in cash for each share of common stock before the bombshell deal was struck.
The move shifts control of the social media platform populated by millions of users and global leaders to the world’s richest person.
Musk vowed to protect free speech on Twitter, ‘defeat the spam bots’ and ‘authenticate all humans’ as he welcomed the acquisition.
Within the company, there was turmoil at the announcement.
‘I feel like he’s this petulant little boy and that he’s doing this to troll…he doesn’t know anything about our policies and what we do… his statement about our algo was f****** insane…
‘Were just gonna let everyone run amok?… nobody knows,’ the employee said, according to the New York Times.
Some Twitter staff were ‘openly rebelling’ against Musk, one observer noted, posting a screen shot of Twitter’s official Github site and posting a public response entitled ‘The Algorithm’, with zero code.
Ali, meanwhile, reported that many of the staff’s concerns related to their perks rather than the direction of the platform.
‘Lots of questions about work from home…Twitter has become a permanent work from home option company and there are concerns about @elonmusk’s statements/actions in the past about work from home and whether that will continue when he takes over,’ Ali tweeted.
‘Understandably lots of questions about what this sale will mean for employee stock options/grants. Someone asks if any employee protection measures were negotiated as part of this deal. Another person asks if this means there will be a hiring freeze until the deal closes.’
Other, Ali said, asked if there was a ‘go shop clause’ – essentially a provision that would allow the Twitter board to seek an alternative offer before the agreement was completed.
Others wanted to understand how the process had unfolded.
‘Another Twitter employee asks: ‘how did we go from poison pill to this so quickly?”
Last month the tech giant announced it was reopening its offices around the world, but in the same statement, which called staff Tweeps, Agrawal said no-one had to go back in if they chose not to.
‘As we open back up our approach remains the same,’ Agrawal said.
‘Wherever you feel most productive and creative is where you will work and that includes working from home full-time forever.
‘Office every day? That works too. Some days in office, some days from home? Of course. That’s actually how most of you feel.
‘Details on logistics, dates, safety message measures, and how we work will be coming soon from Pat and Tracy to whom I am deeply grateful, along with the amazing cross functional team that carried us through the past two years.
‘And thank you to the tweeps who have in office roles, like our data centres, who have been coming into work for the past two years and continue to show up for us and our customers every single day. We appreciate you.
‘I look forward to seeing you all back at the office or perhaps at an event, somewhere in your home city, or mine? Can’t wait.’
Twitter was one of the first in the tech business to urge employees to work remotely when the coronavirus first emerged in the US in mid-March 2020.
It is unclear if Agrawal addressed the remote work setup on Monday.
But he told employees that their stock options would convert to cash when the deal with Musk closes, which he estimated would take three to six months.
According to The New York Times, he also said that they would continue to receive bonuses according to Twitter’s vesting schedule.
Employees would receive their same benefits packages for a year after the deal was finalized, Agrawal added.
He said he would try and arrange a staff forum with Musk, and said that he would remain at the company as CEO, at least until the deal was finalized.
‘He wants Twitter to be a powerful, positive force in the world, just like all of us,’ Agrawal said of Musk.
‘He believes Twitter matters.’
He urged employees to ‘operate Twitter as we always have,’ adding that ‘how we run the company, the decisions we make and the positive changes we drive — that will be on us, and under our control.’
While the stock is up sharply since he made his offer, it is well below the high of $77 per share it reached in February 2021.
The Tesla tycoon said: ‘Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated.
‘I also want to make Twitter better than ever by enhancing the product with new features, making the algorithms open source to increase trust, defeating the spam bots, and authenticating all humans.
‘Twitter has tremendous potential – I look forward to working with the company and the community of users to unlock it.’
‘Brands are becoming more conscious of their adjacency to risky content or disinformation, so they may take their dollars to other channels with greater safety measures in place.’
Dan Ives, Managing Director and Senior Equity Research Analyst at Wedbush Securities, said Musk was ‘putting a lot of skin in the game’.
He told DailyMail.com: ‘From the perspective of Wall Street the chances of Musk buying Twitter went from five per cent to 95 per cent because the Street expected the Twitter board to continue fighting the bid or for a second bidder to emerge to challenge Musk.
‘Once that didn’t happen, Twitter had to sit down with Musk because Twitter is a public company and there is a fiduciary responsibility to consider his offer.
‘The situation for Twitter changed once Musk detailed his financing last week. The Twitter board was waiting for a White Knight, private equity investor to step up and match or beat Musk’s bid but that never happened.
‘The ”poison pill” trigger that would have made it financially prohibitive for Musk to increase his stake past 15 per cent was just a move to buy more time.
‘But the White Knight never materialized. Twitter was always a disaster for a private equity investor.
‘These investors want to invest in revenue generating companies and that is not Twitter’s business model. Twitter is a long-term investment.
‘As for Musk, he is putting a lot of skin in the game, but his financing plan does not undermine his control of Tesla or his other companies.
‘Only 10 per cent of his Tesla shares are at play. Plus, Musk just got another $25 billion in Tesla stock so he’s essentially using that as collateral for the Twitter buyout.
‘The real threat to Musk’s existing companies, like Telsa and SpaceX, will be his divided attention if his Twitter deal goes through.’
Bosses rebuffed Musk’s initial April 14 offer after he did not offer information on how he would buy the network.
He began to win over shareholders after revealing he had secured financing with the help of Morgan Stanley.
He committed $21 billion in equity, $13 billion from Morgan Stanley in debt facilities and another $12.5 billion from the bank and others in margin loans.
