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The True Nodes of Power

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November 28, 2022 3:04 p.m.
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The ongoing drama at Twitter — along with all the antic heat — has also helpfully illustrated where key power points in our society and economy really reside. Because Twitter is now a private company — no market reactions to worry about — and has no board, Elon Musk can, at least in the short run, do pretty much anything he likes. That’s part of the drama and craziness of the moment. Yoel Roth is the former head of safety at Twitter. He held on for the first few weeks before eventually resigning. Afterwards he wrote an op-ed about the situation in the Times. It’s a very interesting piece, filled with more information than indignation. It’s worth reading. But one thing he noted had gotten very little attention so far in the coverage of the Musk-Twitter story. Twitter is deeply reliant on access to the Apple and Android (owned by Google) app stores.

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