There has been immense controversy over the affect of Elon Musk on the Twitter community. He has made many changes to the features of the Twitter social network—and to the people using it—since he bought the company. I use Twitter as the assistant social media editor of the Pelham Examiner and can say Musk has had a negative impact on network. Since he became chief executive officer of the company, he has laid off many employees, banned people from using the service, including celebrities, and put Twitter in a dire economic predicament. 

On Nov. 4, Musk sent out emails informing employees whether or not they had been fired. The result was around half of Twitter’s approximately 7,500-person staff was cut. Musk brought Tesla employees into the company and has attempted to rehire some of the old team. 

He has sent tweets stating accounts impersonating himself would be permanently suspended if they are not labeled as a “parody.” The new owner suspended celebrities such as comedians Kathy Griffin and Sarah Silverman and actor Rich Sommer.

As Musk has made more changes to the platform, advertisers have left and people haven’t signed up for the subscription service Twitter Blue. As a result, Twitter has lost money. Furthermore, Musk sold some of his Tesla shares in an effort to fund the purchase of Twitter. Musk has left the company with nearly $13 billion in debt. 

Following Musk’s takeover, people have left the Twitter platform. I have decided to stick with the service but will not pay money for any extra features. It frustrates me that this once-sustainable network faces the possibility of much deeper business difficulties. With the negative changes Musk has implemented, I feel no responsibility to aid Twitter in its financial crisis.