Explained: 3 immediate things Twitter's new boss Musk should do

New Delhi, Apr 27: World's richest man Elon Musk is spending USD 44 billion to acquire Twitter, aiming at making it a haven for "free speech." He has called himself a "free speech absolutist", and has declared that "free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy" although a section of people are still unsure whether it will remain a platform of freedom of expression.

Amid all the ifs and buts, there are three important things that he should work on, immediately.

Do Away with Blue Ticks

The blue tick given to verified people has met with a mixed response. Although it helps people to trust the authenticity of the claims, there are times when people with blue ticks have misused it, thereby spreading misinformation or false claims. Also, many believe that verification badge create a "pseudo caste system" and gives a feeling of sense of entitlement to those whose accounts are verified.

Defeat the Bots

Before acquiring the company, Elon Musk had tweeted. "If our twitter bid succeeds, we will defeat the spam bots or die trying!" For the unversed, bots are nothing but automated accounts managed by software. It is used to get more likes and retweets thereby trying to give a boost to the content.

These accounts are not run by humans but a software although it works like legitimate accounts. These are also used to spread malicious links and commit financial fraud. Not to forget, these bots can steal wallet info in case of crypto. So, Musk should do everything possible to defeat the bots.

Transparency in Algorithms

Musk has already expressed his intention on "making the algorithms open source to increase trust. However, he is yet to open up on how he plans to make the Twitter algorithms, which prioritise content that is seen by which users, available for greater scrutiny. Technical experts say that disclosing algorithms comes with its own risks. However, transparency is an important step to promote free speech.