According to a new poll by the Pew Research Center, since Elon Musk bought the social media site late last year, Twitter’s power users have noticed a reduction in posting activity. The report points out that the most active users on the site—defined as the top 20% by tweet volume before Musk’s involvement—saw a significant drop in their average monthly tweet volume after the purchase, down by almost 25%.
In addition, the study showed that almost six out of ten American people who had used Twitter in the previous year had stopped using it. Additionally, a fourth of this group said that they do not anticipate using Twitter a year from now, suggesting possible difficulties for Linda Yaccarino, who will succeed Musk as CEO of the company. Since Musk took control, Twitter has been plagued by worries over the spread of offensive and racist material, which has cost it a number of sponsors recently.
Yaccarino, who just left her position as head of global advertising at NBCUniversal, will need to repair her connections with Twitter’s sponsors and deal with the issue of content moderation. The company’s staff has been drastically decreased by Musk, who has cut it by almost 80% to a current number of 1,500 workers. Musk said in an interview with CNBC that some of the people who were fired should have been kept on, but he also explained the layoffs as necessary amid tough circumstances.
The Pew study also showed that a select number of influential users create the bulk of Twitter’s content. Only 20% of American adults using the network have produced 98% of all tweets since Musk’s takeover.
When prompted for response, Twitter answered in its own style by using a feces emoji.
In conclusion, the Pew Research study shows that after Elon Musk’s purchase, posting activity among Twitter’s influential users decreased. The results also show consumers stopping their use of the service and expressing doubt about their continued use. As the new CEO, Linda Yaccarino will be tasked with mending fences with sponsors and resolving issues with content moderation. In addition, Musk’s decision to reduce the company’s personnel has attracted attention, with a small number of influential users producing the bulk of the platform’s content.
