These celebrities and brands have quit Twitter after Elon Musk’s takeover
The great exit
Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, completed his $44 billion buyout of the social media platform, Twitter on October 27, 2022 and it didn’t take long for him to start making some massive changes. From massive layoffs that skimmed 50 per cent of Twitter’s workforce to modifying policies on content moderation and advertisements, this new era of Twitter under Musk’s reign has caused many users, celebrities, and advertisers to think twice about being on the platform.
The self-proclaimed “free speech absolutist” has spoken about lifting permanent bans, and even hinted at reversing the ban on Donald Trump pre-takeover. Many high-profile figures have come out to call it quits not long after Musk took leadership, reflecting concerns over what he plans to do with the blue bird app. Here is a list of celebrities and brands that have left Twitter (so far).
Shonda Rhimes
Not hanging around for whatever Elon has planned. Bye.
— shonda rhimes (@shondarhimes) October 29, 2022
Shonda Rhimes, creator of Grey’s Anatomy and Bridgerton, said goodbye to her two million followers with a simple message, “Not hanging around for whatever Elon has planned. Bye.”
Gigi Hadid
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Model Gigi Hadid also deactivated her Twitter account and explained in an Instagram story to her 76.2 million followers that the platform had become a “cesspool of hate and bigotry”.
Sara Bareilles
Welp. It’s been fun Twitter. I’m out. See you on other platforms, peeps. Sorry, this one’s just not for me. ❤️🙏🏼
— Sara Bareilles (@SaraBareilles) October 30, 2022
On October 29, award-winning singer and songwriter Sara Bareilles called it quits and tweeted: “Welp. It’s been fun Twitter. I’m out. See you on other platforms, peeps. Sorry, this one’s just not for me.”
Whoopi Goldberg
.@WhoopiGoldberg says on #TheView that "as of tonight," she's "done with Twitter."
"I'm going to get out, and if it settles down and I feel more comfortable, maybe I'll come back." https://t.co/cVclFZQmjA pic.twitter.com/0Ih9fp9yHG
— The View (@TheView) November 7, 2022
Not one to censor her thoughts, actor Whoopi Goldberg expressed on an episode of The View on November 7 that things have gotten “messy” and that she’s “done with Twitter.”
Toni Braxton
I'm shocked and appalled at some of the "free speech" I've seen on this platform since its acquisition. Hate speech under the veil of "free speech" is unacceptable; therefore I am choosing to stay off Twitter as it is no longer a safe space for myself, my sons and other POC.
— Toni Braxton (@tonibraxton) October 29, 2022
“Shocked and appalled” by the content she’s seen on the platform post-Musk merger, R&B singer Toni Braxton announced that she is staying off the platform as it is “no longer a safe space.”
Ken Olin
Hey all –
I’m out of here. No judgement.
Let’s keep the faith.
Let’s protect our democracy.
Let’s try to be kinder.
Let’s try to save the planet.
Let’s try to be more generous.
Let’s look to find peace in the world.
💙— Ken Olin (@kenolin1) October 28, 2022
The executive producer of Emmy-award-winning show This Is Us took a more poetic approach to his sign off. He urged everyone to be “kinder” and “more generous.”
Erik Larsen
Best known as the comic book creator of The Amazing Spider-Man, Erik Larsen had previously tweeted in April that he would quit Twitter if Musk really went through with the buyout. It seems that Larsen honoured his word as his account appeared to be deactivated as of October 31 and later confirmed it on NBC News.
Balenciaga
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Balenciaga was the first major fashion brand to leave the Twitter-sphere, with many wondering if other brands will follow suit. The Paris-based brand had approximately 950,000 followers on the platform.
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