Elon Musk announced that he is forming a council to oversee Twitter’s content moderation decisions.
Musk said on Friday that Twitter would implement a “Content moderation council” with “widely diverse viewpoints” to help with decisions about content. The idea was proposed a day after Musk took complete control of the company and appears to draw inspiration from Facebook’s Oversight Board. It’s also a concept that Twitter has previously explored.
While many users expect Musk to manage the company’s content moderation policies, the billionaire said he would not do so until the council is formed. “No major content decisions or account reinstatements will happen before that council convenes,” Musk tweeted. Musk has not released details on what the council will entail or who will appear on it.
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Twitter formed a Trust and Safety Council in 2016 in an attempt to take a “global and inclusive approach” to its content. The council was quickly slammed by critics, who described it as an “Orwellian Nightmare.” The council is still operating as of Friday, although members have claimed that it has been ignored by Twitter leadership in the past.
Early reports indicated that Musk intended to reverse the permanent bans on users on the platform, including that of former President Donald Trump. The former president, though, said he had no intent on returning to Twitter and would stick to his own platform, Truth Social.
Musk has approached Twitter’s content moderation policy with a “free speech absolutist” policy that would only limit content as required by law. However, he promised advertisers that the platform would not become a “free for all hellscape” upon his acquisition of Twitter and that he would ensure it was open.
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Musk’s acquisition of Twitter comes after several months of legal tension. Musk offered to buy the company in April for $54.20 a share, only to attempt to terminate the deal in July over allegations of too many spam bots. Twitter filed suit to force Musk to uphold the original price, leading to various legal spats in the Delaware Court of Chancery. Musk relented in early October, agreeing to uphold the actual price.
The Oversight Board, which reviews significant content moderation decisions on Facebook and Instagram, is a third-party entity created in 2020 to oversee content moderation decisions. The company announced on Oct. 20 that it was reprioritizing its upcoming cases to focus on issues related to elections, gender expression, and hate speech.
