Elon Musk, renowned for his ventures in digital payments and electric cars, added a new chapter to his eclectic journey by acquiring Twitter for $44 billion in 2022, rebranded as X. However, this move coincided with a decline in tech stocks, turning it into a costly endeavor. As Musk took the reins, concerns over free speech and his ownership led to an exodus of leftist users from the platform.
Elon Musk, renowned for his ventures in digital payments and electric cars, added a new chapter to his eclectic journey by acquiring Twitter for $44 billion in 2022, rebranded as X. However, this move coincided with a decline in tech stocks, turning it into a costly endeavor. As Musk took the reins, concerns over free speech and his ownership led to an exodus of leftist users from the platform. The data indicates a drop in accounts following Democrats in the Senate by 0.2% within 24 hours of the announcement, while Republican accounts increased by 0.8%. Subsequent trends revealed a strengthening of these shifts.
Amidst these fluctuations in follower numbers, typically associated with bot clean-ups, a noteworthy pattern emerged. Republican accounts, far from experiencing a decline, saw substantial follower gains, challenging the assumption of a conventional bot purge. Twitter responded in April 2023, attributing these changes to the creation and deactivation of accounts, a trend persisting throughout 2023. Senate Democrats faced an average loss of 3% of followers since October 2022, while Republicans gained approximately 20% more. Notably, Senator Bernie Sanders lost around 400,000 followers (3% of his base), whereas Senator Rand Paul gained over 1 million, marking a 25% increase.
Despite these shifts, the platform still maintains a Democratic tilt, with Democratic senators having 50% more followers than their Republican counterparts, albeit reduced from an 85% lead in October 2022. Indications of X's altered political center are challenging to quantify precisely. Analytics firm Sensor Tower estimates a 38% drop in app downloads compared to the previous year, suggesting a potential loss of around 15% of monthly users. This decline, potentially attributed to a bot purge rather than a liberal user retreat, raises concerns among advertisers about increased unsavory content.
While Elon Musk's enthusiasts believe his social media approach resonates with X's general user base, the data suggests that his daring endeavors are yet to yield substantial benefits. The platform, now under Musk's ownership, grapples with shifting demographics, a fluctuating user base, and concerns over content integrity.
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