The cost of free speech? 'X' now worth 1/5 what Musk paid for it.

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   tsmogposted 4 weeks ago

   Today, investors in 'X' (Twitter) see their investment reduced to 79% of its value before Musk bought it. From . . .
   
   Elon Musk’s X Is Now Worth Around A Fifth Of The $44 Billion He Paid For It, Fidelity Says by Forbes online magazine (Sept 30, 2024)
   https://www.forbes.com/sites/tylerroush … lity-says/
   
   Key Facts
   
   ** Fidelity’s stake in X is now worth about $4.19 million, an estimate that values X at $9.4 billion, according to recent disclosures from Fidelity.
   
   ** Fidelity’s initial $19.6 million holding from before Musk purchased X in October 2022 has been reduced by nearly 79% as of the end of August, the company said.
   
   ** The investment firm has reduced the value of its stake multiple times this year: Fidelity marked down the value of its shares by 10.2% in January and another 5.7% in February, despite increasing its estimates by 11% in December.
   
   ** X did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Forbes.
   
   Also, Truth Social sees a downward trend in valuation. From . . .
   
   Donald Trump has lost $4 billion in wealth amid bumpy ride for Trump Media & Technology Group by CBS News (Sept 11, 2024)
   https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-djt- … th-social/
   
   "Former President Donald Trump's personal stake in Trump Media & Technology Group topped more than $6 billion in March when its shares soared after making their public market debut. Nearly six months later, that fortune has dwindled to less than $2 billion amid losses and shrinking revenue.
   
   A months-long slump has lopped more than 70% from the stock's valuation since its late March peak, with the shares hitting a new low on Wednesday. As the biggest shareholder in Trump Media & Technology, Trump has suffered the largest losses, although the decline is only on paper for now since he's not yet able to sell any of his shares.
   
   Trump owns about 60% of Trump Media & Technology Group, a money-losing social media company that trades under the ticker DJT (the former president's initials). The company has gained a following among Trump's supporters, typically retail investors who have flocked to groups on Truth Social to express concern about the declining share price and blame short sellers for the stock's swoon."
   
   Both sites are very strong proponents of 'Free Speech' and implement that practice at their websites. Can one conclude there is a cost for free speech as a cosmic simile ? Or, is it just a coincidence they both are losing money in the grand scheme of things? Why do you suppose or speculate that they both are losing money? Competition? What do those competitors have that 'X' and Truth Social don't?
   
   Thoughts, criticisms, accolades, and/or commentary?

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   1. 71

      Ken Burgessposted 4 weeks agoin reply to this

      Twitter/X is no longer listed, so its not something "investors" can really lose money on... a few rich people, Musk primarily, put forth the money to ensure there was a 'Town Hall' for the world... where people could talk about issues without fear of being banned for...
      
      Expressing a political opinion, or a concern about a vaccine, or their position on a social event...
      
      In addition, it removed the FBI censorship program that influenced the major social media sites in America... now there is one social media site that chooses to ignore the wishes of the FBI and the Administration.

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