‘It’s been fun Twitter – I’m out’: Eight celebrities who might quit site after Elon Musk’s takeover
Elon Musk pledged to make getting rid of spam accounts one of his main priorities after buying Twitter – but there’s another mounting exodus that he perhaps did not intend.
Fears over the SpaceX founder’s potentially loose stance on content moderation has plenty of genuine users considering their future on the platform, including some of its famous faces.
So while Twitter could before too long welcome back some of its most infamous banned accounts – chief among them Donald Trump – it may soon be saying goodbye to even more.
Here’s a running list of the celebrities who are fleeing the nest… or threatening to do so.
Stephen King
The horror author has been a consistent tweeter for almost nine years, but said he’d quit if Musk goes ahead with reported plans to move Twitter’s verification badges behind a paid subscription.
“$20 a month to keep my blue check? F*** that, they should pay me,” he tweeted to his 6.9 million followers.
“If that gets instituted, I’m gone like Enron.”
“We need to pay the bills somehow!” replied Musk, the world’s richest man.
“Twitter cannot rely entirely on advertisers. How about $8?”
Musk has since confirmed the company will charge $8 a month as part of a Twitter Blue membership.
Toni Braxton
Grammy-winning R&B artist Braxton has already headed out – telling her two million followers she was “shocked and appalled at some of the ‘free speech'” she had seen on Twitter since the Musk deal closed.
A commitment to free speech was at the heart of Musk’s pitch for the site, though he has insisted he will not let it become a so-called “free-for-all hellscape”.
Braxton said: “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.”
Sarah Bareilles
Another Grammy winner, Bareilles has also gone through with her departure.
“Welp. It’s been fun Twitter. I’m out,” she wrote.
“See you on other platforms, peeps. Sorry, this one’s just not for me.”
Eric Idle
Monty Python favourite Idle echoed King’s concerns about Musk’s payment proposals.
“I’m sure Elon will want to start making his money back,” the 79-year-old said.
“But if he charges me to entertain you, and he lets the orange monster back, I think I may decline.”
The “orange monster” is believed to be a reference to Donald Trump.
LeBron James
The NBA legend has not closed his account, but shared his concerns about a reported surge in the use of racist language on Twitter following Musk’s takeover.
Tweeting to his more than 52 million followers on 29 October, the day of his most recent tweet, James said: “I dont know Elon Musk and, tbh, I could care less who owns twitter.
“But I will say that if this is true, I hope he and his people take this very seriously because this is scary.
“So many damn unfit people saying hate speech is free speech.”
Read more:
Super app or ‘Wild West’? The future of Twitter under Elon Musk
Alex Winter
The Bill & Ted star has already locked his Twitter account and indicated he will not return.
Heading to the actor’s @Winter account page now displays the message: “This account doesn’t exist.”
In a statement to NBC News, he explained his decision: “Elon Musk taking over Twitter and making it a private company with less oversight has immediately made the platform more prone to hate speech, targeted attacks, and the spread of disinformation.
“If Twitter returns to being a public company run by rational actors, many of us will return.”
Shonda Rhimes
The creator of hit series Grey’s Anatomy, who had almost two million followers, has also packed her bags.
“Not hanging around for whatever Elon has planned,” she said.
“Bye.”
Josh Gad
Disney and Broadway actor Gad said he was not “not sure” if he would stay on Twitter much longer.
Commenting on the “exodus”, he said: “Freedom of speech is great. Hate speech intended to harm (with no consequences) ain’t what I signed up for.”
Entertainment
Snoop Dogg becomes co-owner and investor of Swansea football club saying it’s ‘an underdog just like me’
Police are taking no further action over Kneecap’s performance at Glastonbury.
Officers said they had investigated “comments about a forthcoming court case made during Kneecap’s performance” at the festival on 28 June.
However, after Crown Prosecution Service advice, they decided there is not enough evidence “to provide a realistic prospect of conviction for any offence”.
The Avon & Somerset force started investigating the Irish group’s show last month, as well as comments by punk-rap duo Bob Vylan.
It said they were looking at a possible public order incident.
Police said on Friday that the investigation into Bob Vylan’s performance was ongoing.
The London duo were widely criticised – and caused a BBC crisis – after leading on-stage chants of “death to the IDF” (Israel Defence Forces).
Kneecap’s Liam Og O Hannaidh appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in June. Pic: PA
Kneecap posted a photograph on Instagram, which the group said was an email from police announcing the case was being dropped.
They said their packed Glastonbury gig was a “celebration of love and solidarity” and reporting used “wildly misleading headlines”.
Fears over what Kneecap might do or say during the performance had prompted the BBC not to show it live.
The group said: “Every single person who saw our set knew no law was broken, not even close… yet the police saw fit to publicly announce they were opening an investigation.”
“There is no public apology, they don’t send this to media or post it on police accounts,” they added.
The police statement on Friday said they had informed Kneecap of their decision to drop the case.
Read more from Sky News:
Snoop Dogg becomes a co-owner of Swansea FC
American Idol TV executive and husband shot dead
One of the group’s members appeared in court in June charged with a terror offence.
Liam Og O hAnnaidh is accused of displaying a flag in support of Hezbollah, a proscribed organisation in the UK, at a gig last year.
He was released on unconditional bail ahead of a second court appearance in August.
Entertainment
Tomorrowland: ‘Devastating’ blaze destroys main stage at major festival – two days before it was due to begin
A huge fire has destroyed the main stage of a major festival in Belgium – two days before it was due to begin.
Tomorrowland is a dance music event as big as Glastonbury – and David Guetta was due to perform.
Footage showed flames and thick plumes of black smoke engulfing the stage and spreading to nearby woodland on Wednesday.
The fire gutted the main stage
Fire crews attempt to bring the blaze under control
The annual festival in the town of Boom, north of Brussels, is one of the biggest in Europe and attracts about 400,000 people over two consecutive weekends.
It is famous for its immersive and elaborate designs and attracts big names within dance music – including Guetta, best known for tracks When Love Takes Over and Titanium.
Dutch DJs Martin Garrix and Charlotte de Witte were also due to perform, along with the likes of Swedish House Mafia, Eric Prydz and Alok.
Black smoke could be seen rising into the sky
The festival’s website described the creative elements which went into the elaborate main stage.
The theme, described as Orbyz, was “set in a magical universe made entirely out of ice” and “full of mythical creatures”.
Read more from Sky News:
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American Idol executive shot dead
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Organisers said no one was injured in the blaze but confirmed “our beloved main stage has been severely damaged”, adding they were “devastated”.
Spokesperson Debby Wilmsen added: “We received some truly terrible news today. A fire broke out on the Tomorrowland site … and our main stage was essentially destroyed there, which is truly awful.
“That’s a stage that took years to build, with so much love and passion. So I think a lot of people are devastated.”
Spokesperson Debby Wilmsen told reporters ‘a lot of people are devastated’
Despite the fire, Tomorrowland organisers said they were still expecting 38,000 festivalgoers at DreamVille, the event’s campsite.
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