Woke backlash at Twitter takeover

WOKE celebrities and Left-wing activists threatened to quit Twitter yesterday amid fears that Elon Musk’s takeover could give banned users and trolls ‘a free pass for hatred’.

The Tesla billionaire vowed to protect free speech after his £35billion buyout was announced on Monday but critics warned the move could allow banned users including Donald Trump to return to the platform. A so-called ‘wokerati’ of celebrities and campaigners have now threatened to shut their accounts over fears of a spike in hate speech and bigotry if all moderation controls are lifted.

Mr Musk, 50, said he wanted to ‘unlock’ the site and make it better. He added: ‘I hope that even my worst critics remain on Twitter, because that is what free speech means.’ Last night, he tried to clarify his definition, tweeting: ‘By “free speech”, I simply mean that which matches the law. I am against censorship that goes far beyond the law.’ But English actress Jameela Jamil quit the platform, after tweeting: ‘I fear this free speech bid is going to help this hell platform reach its final form of totally lawless hate, bigotry and misogyny.’ Amnesty International, which monitors hate speech on Twitter, tweeted: ‘Two words: toxic Twitter.’

ThE hysterical wailing of so-called liberals gives us hope that Elon Musk buying Twitter will be good for free expression.

The social media giant is perhaps the world’s most influential platform.

Yet overwhelmingly, those banned from this virtual public square hold opinions that don’t conform to the woke orthodoxies. of course, the billionaire could be on a collision course with the Government’s online harms Bill, which compels firms to remove content that is harmful but legal.

But that is a bridge to cross. For now, we should welcome the restoration of diversity of opinion on Twitter – and the curbing of McCarthyite anti-free speech zealots.