Will Elon Musk Save Babylon Bee from Suspension? CEO Details Conversation Before Stock Purchase
Elon Musk’s $2.9 billion purchase of a 9.2 percent stake in Twitter has led to numerous theories about the changes the Tesla CEO could bring to the platform, including saving certain accounts under suspension from the company.
Seth Dillon, the CEO of conservative satire site The Babylon Bee, gave some possible insight into Musk’s future as Twitter’s largest shareholder in a Tuesday tweet.
“Musk reached out to us before he polled his followers about Twitter’s commitment to free speech,” Dillon wrote. “He wanted to confirm that we had, in fact, been suspended. He even mused on that call that he might need to buy Twitter.”
Musk reached out to us before he polled his followers about Twitter’s commitment to free speech. He wanted to confirm that we had, in fact, been suspended. He even mused on that call that he might need to buy Twitter. Now he’s the largest shareholder and has a seat on the board.
— Seth Dillon (@SethDillon) April 5, 2022
Babylon Bee has been under suspension on Twitter over a tweet the company has refused to voluntarily delete. The recent tweet referred to Assistant Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine, who is a transgender woman, as the “Man of the Year.”
The selection of Levine as the “Man of the Year” was in response to USA Today naming Levine as one of its “Women of the Year.” Dillon has stood defiant against Twitter, which claims the tweet promotes “hateful content.” The CEO has said the company has no intention of deleting the tweet.
We’re not deleting anything. Truth is not hate speech. If the cost of telling the truth is the loss of our Twitter account, then so be it.
— Seth Dillon (@SethDillon) March 20, 2022
In a Tuesday tweet, Musk promised “significant improvements” to the platform, which has been heavily criticized by conservatives over the suspension of outlets such as Babylon Bee, as well as the long-standing suspension of former President Donald Trump.
Musk does have a relationship with Babylon Bee, granting them a lengthy interview late last year where he discussed numerous topics, including his disdain for “wokeness” and its effect on comedy.
“Wokeness basically wants to make comedy illegal,” Musk said. “Trying to shut down [Dave] Chappelle, come on, man, that’s crazy. Do we want a humorless society that is simply rife with condemnation and hate basically? At its heart, wokeness is divisive, exclusionary, and hateful. It basically gives mean people a shield to be mean and cruel, armored in false virtue.”
