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The Conversation with Dasha Burns

Sen. Markey vs. Musk’s Twitter: The freed bird might get its wings clipped

The Conversation with Dasha Burns

POLITICO

News, Government, Politics

4.01.6K Ratings

🗓️ 18 November 2022

⏱️ 32 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

There are some members of Congress who have famously struggled to understand the online world. Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) prides himself on not only understanding the internet, but also for passing some of the key legislation that he likes to say helped lay the foundation for the digital revolution. More recently, Markey has been leading fights to enhance online privacy and regulate social media. So when Elon Musk took over Twitter recently, Markey was paying close attention to see what kinds of changes the richest man in the world might bring to the platform.  The two men have a little history: they previously tussled over safety issues with self-driving technology in Musk’s Tesla electric vehicles. The Muskification of Twitter was equally concerning to the senator. But it was when Musk unveiled a plan to sell blue check marks — the Twitter verification symbol that prevents users from masquerading as other people and corporations — that Markey started to get really worried. What followed turned Markey into Musk’s chief tormentor in Washington. In this week’s Playbook Deep Dive, host and Playbook co-author Ryan Lizza went up to Sen. Markey’s office on Capitol Hill to find out what it’s like to be in a Twitter war with the self described chief twit, and what might come next in this escalating confrontation.   Ryan Lizza is a Playbook co-author for POLITICO.Senator Ed Markey is a Democratic senator from Massachusetts.Afra Abdullah is associate producer for POLITICO audio.Kara Tabor is a producer for POLITICO audio.Brook Hayes is senior editor for POLITICO audio.Adam Allington is senior producer for POLITICO audio.Jenny Ament is executive producer for POLITICO audio. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

The Internet is not something that you just dump something on, it's not a big truck,

0:05.8

it's a series of tubes.

0:08.6

There are some members of Congress who have famously struggled to understand the online

0:13.7

world.

0:15.5

Senator Ed Markey, a Democrat from Massachusetts, prides himself on not only understanding

0:20.8

the Internet, but also for passing some of the key legislation that he likes to say helps

0:26.4

lay the foundation for the digital revolution.

0:29.4

Such as the 1992 Cable Act and the Telecommunications Act of 1996, that's the one with the much-discussed

0:37.9

Section 230.

0:40.4

More recently, from his perch on the Commerce Committee, Markey has been leading fights

0:44.2

to enhance online privacy and regulate social media.

0:48.6

So when Elon Musk took over Twitter recently, Markey was paying close attention to see what

0:54.2

kinds of changes the richest man in the world might bring to the platform.

0:59.0

And two men have a little history.

1:01.1

They previously tussled over safety issues with self-driving technology in Musk's Tesla

1:07.2

electric vehicles.

1:09.4

The Muskification of Twitter was equally concerning to the Senator.

1:14.2

Musk quickly fired half of the company's employees, seemed to ignore a Federal Trade Commission

1:19.3

Agreement in place since 2011, and sent thousands of high-profile users searching for an alternative

1:26.1

to Twitter.

1:27.5

But it was when Musk unveiled a plan to sell Blue Checkmarks, the Twitter Verification

1:32.9

symbol that prevents users from masquerading as other people and corporations, that Markey

...

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