By Sheila Dang

(Reuters] – News of Tesla: Elon Musk is taking a seat on the board at Twitter (NYSE). This has caused some Twitter employees to panic over whether the social media company will be able to control content. Insiders from the company told Reuters.

After the shocking revelation this week that Musk was a self-described “free expression absolutist”, he had acquired enough shares for Twitter to be the largest shareholder. Political conservatives started flooding Twitter with demands for Donald Trump’s return. After the January 6th terrorist attacks, Musk was removed from Twitter (NASDAQ:) as well as Facebook. Capitol Riot over incitement to violence.

“Now that Twitter’s biggest shareholder is @ElonMusk, it’s high time for political freedom. Oh… and BRING BACK TRUMP!,” tweeted Republican Congresswoman Lauren Boebert on Monday.

Despite Twitter’s repeated assertion this week that it does not take policy decisions, four Twitter employees spoke to Reuters and said they were concerned about Musk’s potential influence on the company’s policies regarding abusive users or harmful content.

Musk joining the board could mean that employees are less likely to support moderation, which would undermine years of effort to make Twitter a space for healthy discourse. This would allow mob violence and trolling to thrive.

Trump banned Twitter and Facebook from his account. The billionaire said that many would not like the U.S. tech firms acting as “the de facto arbiter for free speech.”

Musk may not have stated his goals for his new position on the board but he has already telegraphed them with Twitter. One week before Musk announced a 9.1% stake, he polled the 80 million Twitter followers about whether Twitter adhered to the principle free speech.

For fear of reprisal, the employees asked to remain anonymous and cited Musk’s past history of attacking critics via Twitter. Musk, a British diver who had saved children in Thailand’s cave, was accused in 2018 of being an alleged pedophile.

Musk won a defamation case https://www.reuters.com/article/us-musk-lawsuit-idINKBN1YA13U brought by the diver in 2019.

Twitter spokesperson, when asked to comment, reiterated Tuesday’s statement about the board playing an “important advisory and feedback function across the entire of our service”, but that daily operations are handled by Twitter’s employees and management.

According to the spokesperson, “Twitter is determined to maintain impartiality in developing and enforcing its policies and regulations,” he stated.

Reuters interviewed some employees who were skeptical about the commitment of the company to these goals. Unemployed said, “It’s hard to believe that (the board), doesn’t exercise influence.” Elon would not want to be on the board if that were true.

Other employees Reuters spoke with said Musk’s involvement might help accelerate product and feature launches and offer a new perspective to active Twitter users.

Musk and Tesla did not respond to our requests for comment.

According to one employee, Twitter’s board features prominently during discussions at the company, which is more than any other tech company. This is due to Twitter’s single-class share structure. It differs from Meta Platforms Inc where the founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg has control of the company via a dual-class share structure. Twitter teams are often tasked with communicating a strategy or a decision to the board.

TRUMP’S RETURN?

A source familiar with operations at the company said that Trump is not currently being reinstated. Twitter spokeswoman said that there is no plan to change any policies.

However, a veteran auto analyst that covers Musk’s Tesla operating model said it is likely just a matter time. Trump could have afforded it if he were really wealthy. “So Elon does what Trump would like to do,” stated Sam Abuelsamid, Guidehouse Insights analyst.

Elon now owns almost 10% of Twitter, so I wouldn’t be surprised if Twitter restored Trump’s Twitter account,” he stated.

Employees suggested that Musk’s participation may alter Twitter’s corporate culture. They said they currently value inclusivity and believe it will change in the long-term. Musk, who has posted memes mocking transgender people and efforts to stop the spread COVID-19 has been widely criticized. He also compared Hitler to world leaders.

Many employees felt alarmed at the warmth of Musk’s welcome by Parag Agrawal, CEO Twitter, and Jack Dorsey cofounders. They decided to go on the job market.

According to one source, “Some people have started looking at their resumes.” “I don’t want to work for somebody (like Musk).”