The Stop Harassment, Monetization, and Edit Button: This is How Elon Musk Can Improve Twitter | technology

Tycoon Elon Musk promises to revolutionize the most influential social network on the planet. His entry into Twitter headquarters bearing a trough – a resounding metaphor with wordplay – and the sudden dismissal of key managers once he arrives at resounding changes to the management of a platform that were transcendental in the way they express themselves as world leaders, news is reported, brands are sold, and proliferated Cultural memes. For once, Musk gave up his usual life trolls And he got serious about explaining It’s a statement His “motive” to take over the company: “I didn’t do it because it was easy. I didn’t do it to make more money. I did it for humanity, which I love.” “It is important for the future of civilization to have a common digital public arena,” he added.

The problem, obviously, is that not everyone agrees on what this public domain should look like, nor on how to make it useful for ‘civilization’. While the richest man in the world Reply to requests In some users, EL PAÍS contacted specialists in different areas of the digital world and also popular speakers to imagine how they could improve the box that Musk is talking about. From stopping threats to financial stimulus for content creators, these are their suggestions:

Marilos Congosto (Tweet embed)

Researcher Mariluz Congosto, who specializes in analyzing the behavior of Twitter users, is raising concerns about the plans of the company’s new owner. “I am very pessimistic with the arrival of Elon Musk on Twitter. I think moderation will be more lenient, which will involve more stress,” he confirms via email. In his view, moderators on Twitter are weak: “It gives too much weight to complaints without analyzing whether they are regulated or not.”

A social network analyst from Carlos III University asserts that in Spain, there are two groups at the ideological extremes, those that suspend most accounts, and lack transparency. The criteria for deciding whether a tweet is in violation of the rules are also unclear. Finally, the appeal system is slow and arbitrary,” concludes Kongosto.

Borja Adswara (Tweet embed)

Digital law professor Borja Adswara hopes Musk will keep his promise not to delete tweets or profiles: “He promised users he would be more respectful of free speech. And that’s what we users are waiting for. Not as an expert anymore, but as a tweeter: I don’t agree that Twitter and other platforms like Instagram and Facebook have shifted from neutral platforms where they were not responsible for user content to deciding what content is allowed or not. Who is Twitter or any social network to say what is true and what is false? This is the purpose of freedom of expression and information, and to inform with different editorial lines “.

Regarding the risks this may pose to the spread fake newsAdsuara argues that analyzing whether a piece of news is true or false one by one is very complex. “What needs to be done is to dismantle artificial disinformation campaigns that use fake accounts or bots,” he says.

Ann Shepard (_anapastor_)

Journalist and founder of Newtral is a frequent target of organized attacks on the social network: “For the first time in more than 10 years, I had to close comments on my account. At first there were campaigns from the far right and now the far left. But for years, too, it was common to read the word “whore.” Or people who wish me death in my country timetable. Obviously we have gotten worse,” he regrets. What must change, he tells me, from his own experience: “I came to report to the police that the man who wanted me to be the least serious was gang rape. And nothing happened. I don’t know if the solution is to remove anonymity from accounts, because I know anonymity is a way to survive in countries where freedom of expression is persecuted. Perhaps to avoid harassment and polarization, Twitter should use every technology at its disposal in detecting and eliminating those new accounts created for the purpose of harassment.

He deplores: “They’re doing something, but from my point of view it’s not enough and that makes me think the hype would probably interest them to maintain their business model.” In addition, Pasteur believes that the platform “should take the fight against hoaxes and disinformation more seriously.” When he makes a decision, as happened with Donald Trump [a quien Twitter cerró la cuenta]for example, does it without a clear, transparent and coherent scheme of reasons,” he laments.

Gemma Galdon Clavell (Tweet embed)

The director of algorithm audit firm Eticas Tech argues that platforms like Twitter must ensure that global opinion spaces are free, but responsibly. “Resources must be invested to make it a healthy communication space, where hateful, toxic or illegal content is not amplified. All platforms have tried to automate these processes and we have seen that automation is not working well,” says Gemma Galdon-Clavell. “I fear that Musk’s intentions are completely at odds with this need, both to increase investment and to ensure that it is a space where opinions, personal data, and users are not marketed,” he adds.

An expert on matters of ethics and technology says that finding the balance between freedom of expression and everyone’s freedom to “not feel violated” is very complicated. Whoever must lay the foundations for this balance is the public sphere, it is politics. And since it doesn’t, we have a very unusual space where the platforms are deciding who is speaking and who is not. This is very dangerous for democracies. We understand that deep or collective decisions should be made by parliaments and not by private corporate boards,” he argues.

Manuel Bartoal (Tweet embed)

As a screenwriter, Bartual has achieved unprecedented success by developing a real-time fictional story to be told on Twitter, a mysterious story that has kept hundreds of thousands of users on edge. Their proposals move at this level, i.e. encouraging content creators to develop their creativity on the platform: “Many people will appreciate a monetization program similar to the one offered by YouTube. There are many Twitter users who create content for the platform on a regular basis and their only way to get revenue from their work is from Through sponsored content or actions they develop in parallel, such as publishing books or collaborating in media.” lament. “If Twitter ensures income for all of these creators, they can focus on growing professionally without moving away from the platform. This is something that will be beneficial for everyone: Twitter, the creators and the audience,” summarizes Bartoal.

In addition, he considers, “The real outstanding problem is not Twitter, it’s us. We’re in 2022, but we’re still digital priests. The solutions I read to improve public conversation and try to avoid cases of harassment or lynching usually go through restricting freedom of expression, And I don’t think that’s a door we should open. Bartoal suggests another approach: “You have to go to the root of the problem and invest in digital education. The day everyone realizes that behind every tick there is someone who will be when we achieve a healthier Twitter.”

Lucia Taboada (Tweet embed)

This journalist from Cadena SER, known on Twitter for her humorous tweets tied to current events, calls for more action against the hoax problem: “What I would like, which seems not to happen, is for Twitter to restrict even more. fake news; To put more barriers against misinformation. I say it doesn’t look like it’s going to happen because all of Musk’s messages so far have been about the exact opposite: being more lenient with the politics of moderation. In fact, he recently tweeted that “bird flies free‘, a fairly obvious metaphor in this sense. Musk not only acquired Twitter for economic profitability, but also to control the global conversation.

Taboada adds another already legendary request among users: “Where a mini point can be scored is by creating a button to edit tweets, a historical claim by tweeters, especially those who community managers clumsy. I think I’d have a lot of unanimity because we’ve all made Twitter mistakes.

Ferdinand Cordoba (Tweet embed)

Brand strategist Fernando de Cordoba will make many changes, starting with making it easier for company employees to reach out, so that content creators can solve their problems with the help of humans: “I will fight more against harassment, plagiarism and everything related to harassment and humiliation. It will also give greater support to companies and advertisers. And content creators. It’s ridiculous for a person to lose their account because few detractors agree to remove it. In addition, he regrets that “even if you have hundreds of thousands of followers or a verified account, there is no personal interest” on the platform. He says: “It’s what Twitter needs the most.” “There are small details of important functions, but the main thing that needs to be fixed are the harassment issues and that they can Throw Billing,” he insists.

Alvaro Ortigosa (Tweet embed)

Alvaro Ortigosa, director of the Center for Research in Forensic Science and Security (ICFS-UAM), defends his happiness with Twitter as a user, and that he would be “cautious” in making the changes. However, he sees the biggest problem with bots creating suspicious content at scale: “I understand there has to be a firm decision, and a clear will to fight bots. At this point I think Elon Musk and those with decision-making power should They interfere,” explains this specialist in disclosing this type of account. “It’s not easy, because Twitter believes that a big part of the platform’s success lies in the potential for bots to be implemented. Technically, there are many alternatives that might not eliminate it completely, but would make it very difficult to operate,” he asserts.

Lucas Melcon, also known as MALACARA (Tweet embed)

Sevillian Lucas Melcón, known online as MALACARA for his humorous content in an Andalusian accent, partly agrees with Bartual that creators who fill Twitter with content should be protected: “People who make things honest and dedicate themselves to this should get more support for the platform. Take care of those of us who stand at the foot of the valley, for in the end we are the ones who generate the traffic that gives them work; that must be defended like who defends the rights of workers, and who makes wealth?

In addition, it highlights the need to “humanize the platform and persecute people who lie.” “Twitter, in addition to being a social network, is a medium of communication and must abide by the rules: it cannot say ‘I wash my hands here.’ There must be strictness and whoever does not abide by the rules, to the damned street,” he demands.

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