Elon Musk's top Twitter moves this weekend: Delay of $8 blue check mark, Jack Dorsey debate, layoffs and more

Under Musk's leadership, Twitter will reportedly delay the launch of its new $7.99 'Twitter Blue' subscription option that includes a blue check verification until after the midterms

Elon Musk and Jack Dorsey went back and forth about content moderation and misleading information on Twitter Sunday night, in the wake of the Tesla CEO's acquisition of one of the world's most-used social media platforms.

Dorsey, who created Twitter in 2006, responded to Musk's tweet about Twitter needing to become the "most accurate source of information about the world."

"accurate to who?" Dorsey asked. 

"As judged by the people of Twitter via Community Notes (formerly Birdwatch)," Musk responded.

ELON MUSK SAYS TWITTER WILL SOON ALLOW USERS TO MONETIZE CONTENT, MAKE LONG-FORM POSTS

"I still think… Birdwatch is a far better name And ‘more informative’ a far better goal," Dorsey countered, leading both men to debate about the purpose of the feature and what it should be called.

"Not everything needs to have 'bird' in the name! Too many bird groups fighting each internally other at Twitter. Angry Birds," Musk joked. Community Notes, which adds labels and context to potentially misleading tweets, was introduced as Birdwatch in 2021. 

The feature began as a "community-based approach to misinformation" after the 2020 Presidential election. A tweet posted by the White House was infamously flagged last week for erroneously crediting Biden with increasing Social Security payments.

Dorsey's exchange with Musk comes one day after the former CEO posted an introspective reflection about how he ran Twitter.

"Folks at Twitter past and present are strong and resilient," Dorsey tweeted on Saturday. "They will always find a way no matter how difficult the moment."

"I realize many are angry with me," he continued. "I own the responsibility for why everyone is in this situation: I grew the company size too quickly. I apologize for that."

Musk cut about half of the company's 7,500 employees on Friday. 

Musk tweeted that Twitter's layoffs were necessary because the company was losing more than $4 million per day.

ELON MUSK BLASTS AOC: ‘NOT EVERYTHING AOC SAYS IS 100% ACCURATE’ 

On Sunday, it was reported that the social media platform was reportedly trying to bring some of those workers back. Dozens of workers are being asked to return, some of whom were laid off by mistake and others who have experience building features that the new Twitter owner wants, according to Bloomberg. 

Another major move by Musk involves the new $7.99 subscription service that allows ordinary users to have blue checkmarks. The feature will reportedly be delayed until after Tuesday's midterm elections. A Twitter manager told the New York Times that the launch of the subscription service is planned for Wednesday.

A weekend Apple iOS update said that users who sign up for the service could receive the blue checkmark next to their names.

"Your account will get a blue check mark, just like the celebrities, companies, and politicians you already follow," the announcement read. 

MUSK ANNOUNCES NEW TWITTER POLICY ON IMPERSONATORS

Musk referenced the subscription service while poking fun at comedian Kathy Griffin for being banned on his platform. Griffin changed her profile name to impersonate Musk, which violated the company's policy against impersonation and parody accounts.

"Actually, she was suspended for impersonating a comedian," the SpaceX founder joked.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX BUSINESS APP

"But if she really wants her account back, she can have it," he added. "For $8"

Musk has also announced other sweeping changes to the platform, including the ability to attach long-form text to tweets, monetization for content creators, changes to Twitter's search feature, and a pay-for-verification plan. 

Musk also doubled down on his plan to promote free speech on the platform. 

"My commitment to free speech extends even to not banning the account following my plane, even though that is a direct personal safety risk," Musk tweeted.

Fox News' Paul Best contributed to this report.

Load more..