“They suspended a sitting president. You know, Twitter suspended a sitting president, which is insane,” said Elon Musk, recalling the state of Twitter (now X) before he took control of the platform. Back in 2022, the Tesla CEO made headlines around the world when he officially announced he was acquiring the multibillion-dollar social media giant. His goal? To transform Twitter into a private company—free from what he described as ideological bias and censorship.
People were very unhappy with the platform’s content moderation policies at the time. For example, Donald Trump’s account was permanently banned, and some of Elon Musk’s own tweets were taken down. That was the last straw for the Tesla boss. Musk closed the deal, buying Twitter for an unbelievable $44 billion, because he wanted to “restore the voice of the people. “He claimed the acquisition would “unlock” the platform’s true potential. The move was polarizing: hailed by conservatives and harshly criticized by many on the political left.
However, the first year didn’t go smoothly. By October 2023, internal documents showed that Twitter’s value had dropped to around $19 billion—roughly 55% less than what Elon Musk had paid. Despite the financial hit, Joe Rogan sees the deal differently. On episode #2339 of The Joe Rogan Experience, while speaking with comedians Luis J. Gomez and Big Jay Oakerson, the podcaster offered a candid defense of the Space X CEO’s decision:
“If you’re really rich and people are stopping you from communicating, you get pissed off and think,”Joe Rogan continued, “‘Well, fuck it, I can just buy Twitter.’ Like, nobody would do that normally. You need a wild person like Elon to do that. That’s a wild move—to say ‘I’ll just buy Twitter,’ and then pay them way more than it’s worth. And then everybody says you’re a terrible businessman because your company lost $20 billion in value in the first year. But it’s like, no—it wasn’t worth $44 billion. He paid $44 billion for it because he wanted it. It wasn’t worth that.”
As of mid-2025, under Elon Musk’s leadership, Twitter (now X) continues to face financial challenges. Annual revenue has slipped from $2.9 billion to $2.5 billion—still a far cry from its $5 billion peak back in 2021. Advertising revenue has also declined by 5%, highlighting the uphill battle the former DOGE head’s team faces.
Yet, there are signs of hope. Earlier this year, Elon Musk launched Grok AI, an innovation intended to reshape the platform’s future. According to Investing.com, projections suggest a potential rebound is on the horizon, with Twitter currently valued at approximately $45 billion—a promising indicator that the company may be turning the corner.
Joe Rogan on what he likes about Elon Musk’s Twitter transformation
Elon Musk followed through on his promise to overhaul Twitter—starting with its name. By rebranding it as X and redefining its mission, the Space X head freed the “bird,” transforming the platform into one rooted in free speech and open expression. Among the most impactful changes was the rollout of Community Notes, previously known as Birdwatch, in 2021. Though the feature existed before Musk’s acquisition, it only gained real traction under his leadership.
In contrast to Twitter’s earlier, often-criticized moderation practices—regularly denounced by free speech advocates—Community Notes handed content accountability to the users, shifting control from top-down censorship to a community-driven, crowdsourced model. The shift was polarizing but marked a clear break from what many viewed as heavy-handed government or institutional influence.
For Joe Rogan, the change represents something profound. During episode #2277 of The Joe Rogan Experience, while speaking with No Country for Old Men star Woody Harrelson, Rogan applauded the approach,
“I think now, the beautiful thing about someone like Elon buying Twitter and turning it into X and having Community Notes is that now you have a way of fact-checking things. People use the community notes and start posting studies in the community notes….You know, so this is the best way to handle misinformation.”
Now that Elon Musk has freed the bird, Twitter has weathered a turbulent chapter—but it’s once again on the rise, determined to establish itself as the most trusted media platform, even above traditional news outlets.
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