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Mikey

@phillymikey.bsky.social

Philly-based photographer/nerd 🏳️‍🌈🇵🇷 📸 Headshots, drag photography, event & lifestyle 🎨 Photoshop composites, Blender 3d Free Palestine 🇵🇸 https://linktr.ee/mikeyrios

53 Followers  |  171 Following  |  5 Posts  |  Joined: 15.11.2024  |  1.6724

Latest posts by phillymikey.bsky.social on Bluesky

🧵 👋 I'm a political scientist who wrote a book about the recent collapse of two democracies (Egypt & Tunisia).

Given the anxieties of today, let me present a 🧵 with thoughts & resources for:

WHAT TO DO IF YOUR DEMOCRACY COLLAPSES:

20.01.2025 14:58 — 👍 5935    🔁 1425    💬 211    📌 182
Photo of Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde.

Photo of Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde.

This is the face of courage and compassion. Thank you Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde for speaking truth to power on behalf of the marginalized.

22.01.2025 15:11 — 👍 80893    🔁 12622    💬 1358    📌 617
I'm writing this with a heavy heart and no small amount of fear. As a former X (formerly Twitter) employee on an H1B visa, I can't reveal my identity without risking everything, but I can't stay silent any longer about what I saw and was made to do. When Elon Musk took over, everything changed. What started as a social media company became something much darker. I was part of a team that was directly ordered to manipulate Twitter's systems to influence the 2024 US presidential election. It wasn't subtle, and it wasn't ethical. We completely changed how the algorithm worked, pushing pro-Trump and right-wing posts to the top of people's feeds. To make it look balanced, we also boosted some left-wing critics of Democrats, but it was all carefully calculated. These changes didn't just affect Americans - they impacted users worldwide. One of the most disturbing things we did was create thousands of fake accounts using advanced AI systems called Grok and Eliza. These accounts looked completely real and pushed political messages that spread like wildfire. Havn't you noticed they all disappeared? Like magic. We also knowingly allowed foreign governments to manipulate the platform. State-backed groups from Israel, Iran, and Russia were running their own influence campaigns, and because their goals aligned with ours, we looked the other way. Even when they clearly broke the rules, we didn't stop them.

I'm writing this with a heavy heart and no small amount of fear. As a former X (formerly Twitter) employee on an H1B visa, I can't reveal my identity without risking everything, but I can't stay silent any longer about what I saw and was made to do. When Elon Musk took over, everything changed. What started as a social media company became something much darker. I was part of a team that was directly ordered to manipulate Twitter's systems to influence the 2024 US presidential election. It wasn't subtle, and it wasn't ethical. We completely changed how the algorithm worked, pushing pro-Trump and right-wing posts to the top of people's feeds. To make it look balanced, we also boosted some left-wing critics of Democrats, but it was all carefully calculated. These changes didn't just affect Americans - they impacted users worldwide. One of the most disturbing things we did was create thousands of fake accounts using advanced AI systems called Grok and Eliza. These accounts looked completely real and pushed political messages that spread like wildfire. Havn't you noticed they all disappeared? Like magic. We also knowingly allowed foreign governments to manipulate the platform. State-backed groups from Israel, Iran, and Russia were running their own influence campaigns, and because their goals aligned with ours, we looked the other way. Even when they clearly broke the rules, we didn't stop them.

Perhaps the most unethical part was how we manufactured news stories. One team would write completely fake articles, while another team would artificially boost their engagement metrics to make them go viral. We specifically targeted certain groups of people, knowing exactly how to manipulate their views and emotions. The moderation team became a tool for our agenda. We systematically silenced anyone who got in our way, enforcing the rules when it suited us and ignoring them when it didn't. Elon Musk himself was deeply involved in these decisions, often joking about being "Black Hat MAGA." What started as US election interference has now spread to other countries. We're currently doing the same thing in Germany and other European nations. The damage we've done is immeasurable, and I don't know if it can ever be fixed. People don't know what's real anymore, and that's exactly what we wanted. The pilot program for the Eliza AI Agent, was election interference. Eliza was release officially in October of 2024, but we had access to it before then thanks to Marc Andreessen. I'm terrified to be writing this, but I had to speak up. I just hope that someone with the power to do something about this sees this letter. You'll know what i’m saying is the truth by Elon's actions to the news someone spoke out. For more evidence look at the docs of Eliza AI Agent software. We left bread crumbs. Yours sincerely, A former employee who can't sleep at night.

Perhaps the most unethical part was how we manufactured news stories. One team would write completely fake articles, while another team would artificially boost their engagement metrics to make them go viral. We specifically targeted certain groups of people, knowing exactly how to manipulate their views and emotions. The moderation team became a tool for our agenda. We systematically silenced anyone who got in our way, enforcing the rules when it suited us and ignoring them when it didn't. Elon Musk himself was deeply involved in these decisions, often joking about being "Black Hat MAGA." What started as US election interference has now spread to other countries. We're currently doing the same thing in Germany and other European nations. The damage we've done is immeasurable, and I don't know if it can ever be fixed. People don't know what's real anymore, and that's exactly what we wanted. The pilot program for the Eliza AI Agent, was election interference. Eliza was release officially in October of 2024, but we had access to it before then thanks to Marc Andreessen. I'm terrified to be writing this, but I had to speak up. I just hope that someone with the power to do something about this sees this letter. You'll know what i’m saying is the truth by Elon's actions to the news someone spoke out. For more evidence look at the docs of Eliza AI Agent software. We left bread crumbs. Yours sincerely, A former employee who can't sleep at night.

Elon Musk's and X's Role in 2024 Election Interference, a letter from an alleged X whistleblower.

"What started as US election interference has now spread to other countries. We're currently doing the same thing in Germany and other European nations."

theconcernedbird.substack.com/p/elon-musks...

22.01.2025 16:24 — 👍 8192    🔁 4086    💬 386    📌 436
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I’m trying to figure out how best to translate the content I make from Instagram and TikTok to BlueSky, so here’s a test! I do drag photography and surreal 3d & Photoshop composites. Here’s my latest project, for the fabulous Crystal Envy on RPDR!

10.01.2025 19:23 — 👍 6    🔁 1    💬 0    📌 0

Just testing the Bluesky vibes…

Fuck transphobia, fuck homophobia, fuck racism, fuck nationalism, fuck yt supremacy, fuck islamophobia, fuck antisemitism, fuck colonialism, fuck fascism, fuck the orange man, power to indigenous peoples, and free Palestine.

Amiright?

22.11.2024 14:13 — 👍 6    🔁 0    💬 2    📌 0

I can’t wait! Getting my green outfit ready 🧙

19.11.2024 13:04 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 1    📌 0

Sick here too , catching up on Rings of Power. Soooo good!

19.11.2024 12:54 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 1    📌 0
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Breaking the ice with a pic of our dog Lucky. Hi everyone!

19.11.2024 12:52 — 👍 31    🔁 0    💬 3    📌 0

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