As DOGE disrupts Washington, Elon Musk is turning X into his own digital Mar-a-Lago: an online club populated by admirers who pay a premium for the chance to seek his favor and a place for their pet cause on his agenda. My story today: wapo.st/4gugJpA - ThreadSky

willoremus.com • 34 days ago

As DOGE disrupts Washington, Elon Musk is turning X into his own digital Mar-a-Lago: an online club populated by admirers who pay a premium for the chance to seek his favor and a place for their pet cause on his agenda. My story today: https://wapo.st/4gugJpA

Comments

wilkos.bsky.social•34 days ago

It’s been a clubhouse for those who love producing Elon-flavored farts and those who love consuming Elon-flavored farts for the last few years. The farts have just grown louder, more concentrated and noxious.

whoadvertiseson.bsky.social•34 days ago

Many of the NGOs, universities, and agencies the right intends to undermine or destroy are still using X. We previously tried to call attention to NGOs. Amnesty International for example is still posting. Every decent org and individual needs to quit using X.

seanparrent.bsky.social•34 days ago

I cannot stand the word “disrupt.” For fuck’s sake, did Hitler attack Europe or just “disrupt” it.

samlow.bsky.social•34 days ago

How many of his "followers" are real?

coffeemalted.bsky.social•34 days ago

📌

jegbuddy.bsky.social•33 days ago

ARE TRUMP AND ELON PUSHING THE GREAT RESET BY DELETING EQUITY? EQUITY AND EQUALITY ARE NOT THE SAME. Personal sovereignty and property. WW3

marythetrainer.bsky.social•34 days ago

“Disrupts” doing a lot of heavy lifting there.

willoremus.com•34 days ago

Hope you'll read the full story, which is where I'd like to think the actual heavy lifting resides. Cheers!

miamichefpapi.bsky.social•34 days ago

To participate on X is to support musk. There is no grey area. If you support musk, you are the problem.

geewhizbiz.bsky.social•34 days ago

More like digital berghof

berkorichard.bsky.social•34 days ago

Good job I closed my Twitter account some months back

kimokirkpatrick.bsky.social•34 days ago

Beta Male energy. I left the day after Elmo came into headquarters carrying that stupid sink.

whpshw.bsky.social•34 days ago

The funny thing about having all your enemies clustered in one or two places is that it would very easy to take our your enemies in a fell swoop. Nothing stopping Dems when they retake power from banning Twitter and letting the chattering class argue why it's a good or bad idea.

azlend.bsky.social•34 days ago

The Lord God King Emperor of absolute free speech said a few days ago that anyone criticizing trump or himself will be banned from X.

cancelcultureclub.bsky.social•34 days ago

Me, every day when I read the news now:

raflw.bsky.social•34 days ago

As DOGE *corrupts* Washington

Just, y'know, fixing the headline. Thanks for digging into his swamp.

edgrantworks.bsky.social•34 days ago

🤢🤮

dbeeler.bsky.social•34 days ago

It has become the premier Nazi Message board in the world.

browwiw.bsky.social•34 days ago

Wait until you have to pay a premium subscription to be a real life citizen of Muskopolis. Eh, that dipshit would call it Xolopis or some shit.

steveforcum.com•34 days ago

I'm still shocked there hasn't been an eruption from Trump on the amount of Twitter news vs driving that traffic to Truth Social.

jenonymous.bsky.social•34 days ago

I do like that M-A-L has become shorthand for “corrupt swamp of sycophants.”

willoremus.com•34 days ago

Musk bills X as a "free speech" zone where right and left mix it up. But through design tweaks, selective rule enforcement, pay-to-play features and his own outsize presence, he has tilted the platform in his own direction, making it a potent propaganda machine. https://wapo.st/4gugJpA

willoremus.com•34 days ago

The centrality of X to Musk's work on behalf of Trump is underscored by the amount of time he spends there. Since October, his activity on X has skyrocketed to an average of well over 100 posts and replies per day. Chart by @jeremybmerrill.com in our story today: https://wapo.st/4gugJpA

petergratton.bsky.social•34 days ago

Feeling a lot better about my comparatively minuscule social media habits.

willoremus.com•34 days ago

As for free speech: Musk's X has rolled out a red carpet for extremists—he approvingly shared posts from formerly banned Milo Yiannapoulos and MTG in recent days—and is rife with Nazi content. But as at a private club, crossing the owner's personal red lines can get you tossed out. https://wapo.st/4gugJpA

willoremus.com•34 days ago

Just as conservatives flock to Mar-a-Lago, they've learned that X can be a place to reach Musk with praise, expressions of fealty, and implicit requests for amplification of their ideas—and now, maybe even a place on the DOGE agenda. @shiraovide.bsky.social flagged this anecdote: https://wapo.st/4gugJpA

willoremus.com•34 days ago

Hope you'll read the full story, which was written w/ reporting help from my amazing colleagues @nitasha.bsky.social, @jeremybmerrill.com, @shiraovide.bsky.social & Trisha Thadani.

Here's a gift link you can access with a free Washington Post account: https://wapo.st/4gugJpA

janinesellsnyc.bsky.social•33 days ago

So freaking boring. Why doesn’t he just get a mirror and sit in front of it and praise himself?

mmorgenschoen.bsky.social•34 days ago

that guy peterson has a point – it costs more than $8 to buy a ticket to a mar-a-lago ball

followmal.bsky.social•34 days ago

📌

followmal.bsky.social•34 days ago

📌

jjgdr.bsky.social•34 days ago

And any journalist still on Xitter should be run out of the profession.

turbineseaplane.bsky.social•34 days ago

Mar-a-XO

mom6.bsky.social•34 days ago

I see him as if he sees himself as a mixed bag of an emperor without the crown combined with a god complex.

“… as if he’s the CEO of all Americans”

mentalstate.bsky.social•34 days ago

One of the 1st things he did was create an algorithm that boosted him to the top of every feed and search.

He had a huge tantrum internally with the few Twitter employees left because that same algorithm made his Nazi salutes go to the top of all feeds.

saandress.bsky.social•34 days ago

"disrupts"🙃

burnhour.bsky.social•34 days ago

Incel https://www.wsj.com/tech/doge-staffer-resigns-over-racist-posts-d9f11a93

jacksprat39.bsky.social•34 days ago

X-crement. No thanks.

pastarte.bsky.social•34 days ago

I don't give a shit about what this madman doe! He and his underage minions belong behind bars for the greatest identity theft in history. PERIOD

chickenlady.bsky.social•33 days ago

No one cares.
It can get closed down

harryfinch.bsky.social•34 days ago

Have to believe there's going to come a clash of titans between Trump and Musk, one that will shake the 'movement.' It will come too late, the damage will be done, but neither of them has, in the long run, the mental capacity to be anyone's partner.

dennisdoubleday.bsky.social•34 days ago

yep. everyone should leave X so the bots and Nazis can just have fun. but they won't actually have fun if there aren't any sane people to argue with. that's why they're starting to show up here.