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Lakers Icon Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Has a Serious Message to Elon Musk Amid Latest Twitter Update: “Social Media Is Not a Playground”

Published 12/02/2022, 11:39 AM EST

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via Reuters

NBA All-Time great Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is someone who uses his platform to the fullest as he talks about various pressing issues in the country and around the world. He doesn’t shy away from criticizing celebrities or politicians for their actions. The Los Angeles Lakers legend had a serious message for billionaire Elon Musk recently. It has been over a month since Musk took over the reins of the social media giant Twitter.

Musk had his work cut out as he tried to buy Twitter. He finally purchased the social media company for $44 billion. After he took over, there were some core changes made in the firm that bothered many sections of society. As per reports, half of the workforce at Twitter was let go after his takeover.

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Ever since Musk’s purchase of Twitter, he has been grabbing the headlines for one reason or the other. Now, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has called out Musk and Twitter for one of its recent changes.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has an important message for Twitter

As per reports, Twitter ended its ban on Covid misinformation. So the platform will no longer enforce its policy against Coronavirus misinformation. Many experts have already labeled the move as a bad one that could “lead to more deaths.” Kareem Abdul-Jabbar shared the same sentiment.

On his personal blog, he wrote, “Social media is not a playground for children to play whatever dangerous games they want regardless of how many get injured. It’s a form of mass communication that, unchecked by those in a position of responsibility, can undermine democracy—and cause the illness and deaths of innocent people.”

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The six-time NBA champion noted that Twitter has more than 300 million active users. He stated the platform is a primary source of news for many. So Abdul-Jabbar believes this new change could prove harmful for many around the world. He added that Twitter should do something to prevent “unnecessary deaths.”

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Twitter’s misinformation policy update

In 2020, at the start of the pandemic, Twitter announced its anti-Covid misinformation policy. According to a report from the business, more than 11,000 accounts have been suspended and more than 100,000 pieces of content have been deleted for breaking the policy since that time.

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With the company’s Birdwatch program, which enables Twitter users to grade and contribute corrections to tweets, Musk appears to be delegating more responsibility for policing false information to users. However, the effectiveness of this program is still doubted by many.

What do you think about Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s comments on Elon Musk? Let us know in the comments section.

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Written by:

Bagavathi Eswaran

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Bagavathi Eswaran is an NBA writer at EssentiallySports. He has been playing the game of basketball for more than 20 years now and has also been following the NBA for more than 10 years. After not being able to go pro, this former college player decided to join the IT industry.
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Edited by:

Satagni Sikder