{"id":4458,"date":"2022-04-26T14:59:36","date_gmt":"2022-04-26T14:59:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/scienceandnerds.com\/2022\/04\/26\/jeff-bezos-is-already-testing-elon-musks-commitment-to-free-speech-by-trolling\/"},"modified":"2022-04-26T14:59:37","modified_gmt":"2022-04-26T14:59:37","slug":"jeff-bezos-is-already-testing-elon-musks-commitment-to-free-speech-by-trolling","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/scienceandnerds.com\/2022\/04\/26\/jeff-bezos-is-already-testing-elon-musks-commitment-to-free-speech-by-trolling\/","title":{"rendered":"Jeff Bezos is already testing Elon Musk\u2019s commitment to free speech by trolling"},"content":{"rendered":"

Source: https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/2022\/4\/25\/23041965\/jeff-bezos-twitter-troll-elon-musk-china-spacex-blue-origin<\/a>
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Just before Twitter announced it\u2019s accepting Elon Musk\u2019s $44 buyout bid<\/a>, the world\u2019s richest man tweeted<\/a>, \u201cI hope that even my worst critics remain on Twitter, because that is what free speech means.\u201d <\/p>\n

His commitment is getting a mild test thanks to a fellow tech billionaire \/ rocket enthusiast \/ media mogul. Jeff Bezos quoted a New York Times<\/em> reporter\u2019s tweet pointing out that Tesla\u2019s business interests in China could give the government leverage over Twitter via its new owner, saying<\/a>, \u201cInteresting question. Did the Chinese government just gain a bit of leverage over the town square?.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bezos is far from the only person with questions, comments, and criticisms over Elon Musk buying Twitter (Twitter employees are likely near the front of the line<\/a>). However, unlike most, he owns the Washington Post<\/em> and has a net worth ($177.5 billion) vaguely within Elon\u2019s range ($264.6 billion). <\/p>\n

Reports suggest<\/a> Elon\u2019s purchase should close without much regulatory trouble, but pushing the angle of possible undue influence from a foreign government is one way you could gum up the works… if you had a few billion dollars and some extra time on your hands<\/a>. Of course, as Elon once told me, \u201cTwitter is fun<\/a>,\u201d and maybe this is just how billionaires joke, like poking each other on Facebook or something. Or maybe Jeff is like a lot of us and is a bit uneasy about who might own his unencrypted DMs<\/a> in a few months.<\/p>\n

Or maybe things went a little too far \u2014 Bezos followed up his spicy tweet with two more<\/a> posted about 90 minutes later, saying the answer is \u201cprobably not,\u201d and that \u201cMusk is extremely good at navigating this kind of complexity.<\/p>\n

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But we\u2019ll see. Musk is extremely good at navigating this kind of complexity.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Jeff Bezos (@JeffBezos) April 26, 2022<\/a>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n