The billionaire’s obsession with Twitter is undermining his industrial successes

A few years ago, it suddenly became inconvenient to spend a stay at one of Trump’s residences, as the President of the United States was a foil. Will we get to walk around in a Tesla tomorrow, as the wealthy Democratic geeks of Silicon Valley do, or will his association with his boss, Elon Musk, 51, become a frustration?

If customers are loyal at the moment, Tesla’s image is deteriorating sharply. According to a Yougov survey, brand perception became negative overall in November. become partisan. According to the Morning Consult Institute, Republicans and Democrats had a very positive image of Tesla in January: positive opinions outnumbered negative opinions by 31 points. That average fell to 26.5 points for the Republicans and, above all, collapsed to 10.4 for the Democrats. In question, Elon Musk’s behavior since he took control of Twitter at the end of October.

The new owner does not act as a neutral administrator of the platform. He doesn’t even have the position of a traditional media boss, pushing his political agenda but remaining cautiously in the background. Multiplying political outings in all directions, against the culture of vigilance, against Joe Biden, against the US Central Bank, against the policy of combating Covid-19.

The most recent, Thursday, December 15, is the suspension of the accounts of two journalists from major media outlets, who are accused of giving his position indirectly in real time and threatening his safety and the safety of his family. The Washington Post thought mr. musk “You have not presented any evidence that any of the journalists did this.”. The interested party — which finally agreed to reactivate the accounts Friday evening, after an online poll — defended itself in the morning against the outcry: “If someone posted in real time the locations and addresses of journalists in The New York Times, the FBI will investigate, there will be congressional hearings, and Biden will make speeches about the end of democracy! » However, these situations are destroying Twitter’s reputation and advertising revenue, with no one knowing where this fight will lead the billionaire.

“Colossal misallocation of time and talent”

South African-born Elon Musk can in no way claim the presidency of the United States, but this fifty-year-old libertarian has become one of the main political players on the right of the American chessboard. Republicans are gleeful about Musk’s anti-wake-up crusade, and the left is screaming ugly. “Random bans of journalists intensify those around you. Take a break and fend off the new outbreak. Maybe try putting your phone down.”urged Democratic Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. For their part, the Europeans plan to ban Twitter.

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