<p>Key figures on the American left, Barack Obama among them, have shed thousands of followers since Elon Musk's planned purchase of Twitter emerged, while numbers have soared for right-wing politicians.</p>.<p>Musk, the world's richest man, struck a deal Monday to buy the US-based social media platform for $44 billion.</p>.<p>The news was greeted with enthusiasm by fans of Musk, who calls himself a free speech absolutist, and horror by proponents of strong moderation of disinformation and hate speech.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read — <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/business/business-news/twitter-not-even-elon-musk-is-wealthy-enough-to-bring-absolute-free-speech-to-the-platform-here-s-why-1104300.html" target="_blank">Can Elon Musk bring absolute free speech to Twitter?</a></strong></p>.<p>Promises to leave the platform trended under hashtags such as #LeaveTwitter. Within hours, many appeared to be following through.</p>.<p>Former US president Obama, the most popular person on Twitter with more than 131 million followers, lost 300,000 of them nearly overnight, according to news outlet <em>NBC</em>. Controversial Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, by contrast, gained nearly 100,000 to her official congressional Twitter account in just 24 hours.</p>.<p>Greene, a vocal ally of former president Donald Trump whose personal profile was banned by the platform, praised the acquisition. "Prepare for blue check mark full scale meltdown after @elonmusk seals the deal and I should get my personal Twitter account restored," she tweeted, referencing the site's system for verifying users.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read —</strong> <strong><a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/business/free-speech-or-hate-speech-fears-for-musks-twitter-1104282.html" target="_blank">Free speech or hate speech? Fears for Musk's Twitter</a></strong></p>.<p>"It really is something how conservative accounts are getting massive follower increases today," Republican Representative Matt Gaetz, another Trump ally, said Tuesday.</p>.<p>Twitter on Tuesday told <em>AFP </em>that while they were monitoring the situation, the fluctuations appeared to be organic and largely due to new accounts being created and existing ones deactivated.</p>.<p>The exodus extended beyond political accounts.</p>.<p>"It's strange to see a loss of some 35,000 followers overnight," the Auschwitz Memorial account posted Tuesday. The profile, which has 1.3 million followers, tweets photos and stories of concentration camp victims.</p>.<p>Musk has said he wants to increase trust in Twitter, which he sees as a digital town square for free speech and debate.</p>.<p>Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey tweeted Monday that "Elon's goal of creating a platform that is 'maximally trusted and broadly inclusive' is the right one." He thanked Musk and Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal "for getting the company out of an impossible situation.</p>.<p>"This is the right path...I believe it with all my heart."</p>.<p><strong>Watch the latest DH Videos here:</strong></p>
<p>Key figures on the American left, Barack Obama among them, have shed thousands of followers since Elon Musk's planned purchase of Twitter emerged, while numbers have soared for right-wing politicians.</p>.<p>Musk, the world's richest man, struck a deal Monday to buy the US-based social media platform for $44 billion.</p>.<p>The news was greeted with enthusiasm by fans of Musk, who calls himself a free speech absolutist, and horror by proponents of strong moderation of disinformation and hate speech.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read — <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/business/business-news/twitter-not-even-elon-musk-is-wealthy-enough-to-bring-absolute-free-speech-to-the-platform-here-s-why-1104300.html" target="_blank">Can Elon Musk bring absolute free speech to Twitter?</a></strong></p>.<p>Promises to leave the platform trended under hashtags such as #LeaveTwitter. Within hours, many appeared to be following through.</p>.<p>Former US president Obama, the most popular person on Twitter with more than 131 million followers, lost 300,000 of them nearly overnight, according to news outlet <em>NBC</em>. Controversial Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, by contrast, gained nearly 100,000 to her official congressional Twitter account in just 24 hours.</p>.<p>Greene, a vocal ally of former president Donald Trump whose personal profile was banned by the platform, praised the acquisition. "Prepare for blue check mark full scale meltdown after @elonmusk seals the deal and I should get my personal Twitter account restored," she tweeted, referencing the site's system for verifying users.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read —</strong> <strong><a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/business/free-speech-or-hate-speech-fears-for-musks-twitter-1104282.html" target="_blank">Free speech or hate speech? Fears for Musk's Twitter</a></strong></p>.<p>"It really is something how conservative accounts are getting massive follower increases today," Republican Representative Matt Gaetz, another Trump ally, said Tuesday.</p>.<p>Twitter on Tuesday told <em>AFP </em>that while they were monitoring the situation, the fluctuations appeared to be organic and largely due to new accounts being created and existing ones deactivated.</p>.<p>The exodus extended beyond political accounts.</p>.<p>"It's strange to see a loss of some 35,000 followers overnight," the Auschwitz Memorial account posted Tuesday. The profile, which has 1.3 million followers, tweets photos and stories of concentration camp victims.</p>.<p>Musk has said he wants to increase trust in Twitter, which he sees as a digital town square for free speech and debate.</p>.<p>Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey tweeted Monday that "Elon's goal of creating a platform that is 'maximally trusted and broadly inclusive' is the right one." He thanked Musk and Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal "for getting the company out of an impossible situation.</p>.<p>"This is the right path...I believe it with all my heart."</p>.<p><strong>Watch the latest DH Videos here:</strong></p>