What’s going on between Twitter and Substack and why is everyone criticizing Elon Musk?

Podstek is literally no longer on Twitter. The social network owned by Elon Musk restricts any links that redirect to the newsletter platform’s domain and restricts any tweet containing the word “Substack”. Users are also facing various warnings when trying to embed tweets in Substack posts as part of an apparent bug. All this, however, is not one of the many failures we have seen on Twitter, as the company is also owned by the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX. Instead, it’s just another tantrum from the mogul.

It all started on April 5th when the people in charge of Substack announced “Notes” a feature where users can post – sorry for the redundancy – notes with images, text, and links within the platform itselfj. Substack actually includes a dedicated notes tab in the main menu. From there, users can view other people’s posts and even give like or share them on your profile, something the app calls “repackages“.

It’s without a doubt feature identical to Twitter notes. In fact, Elon Musk’s social network also has a dedicated tab for viewing other people’s notes, and you can retweet or “like” them as if it were a tweet. Copying or, let’s say, “inspiration” of the capabilities of other platforms, yes, this is common in applications with similar functions, see Instagram and stories; clearly copied from Snapchat stories. But Elon Musk is unhappy that Subsctack has done this with a feature we’ve only seen on Twitter so far.

Subsctak founders say Elon Musk’s social network is restricting links to their platform

Elon Musk’s answer? Restrict any link or content that redirects to the newsletter platform. and at the same time prevent anyone from sharing a Twitter link to Substack itself. Over the past few days, users have been experiencing reports that “Twitter has unexpectedly restricted access to embedding tweets in Substack messages.” All this, in addition, prevents posts from being retweeted or “liked” that contain some kind of link to the aforementioned service. Searching for Substack Twitter does not return any results. Instead, messages with the word “newsletter” appear.

Chris Best, Hamish McKenzie and Jayraj Seth, founders of Substack, were quick to take notice of Musk’s actions and shared their views in a statement sent to edge in which questioned freedom of the press and freedom of expression on Twitter. In a statement, they also called the measure a “caprice” on the part of the tycoon.

We are disappointed that Twitter has chosen to limit the ability of creators to share their work. Writers deserve the freedom to share links on Substack or elsewhere. This dramatic change is a reminder of why writers deserve a role model who holds them accountable, rewards excellent work with money, and defends freedom of the press and freedom of speech. Your livelihood should not be tied to platforms where you don’t own your relationship with your audience and where the rules can change on a whim.

Statement from those responsible for Substack, broadcast by The Verge.

Elon Musk claims Substack tried to steal data from Twitter

Following the Substack founders’ statements, Musk shared a tweet stating that Twitter has never restricted links to the service. He also stressed that “Substack was trying to download a large chunk of the Twitter database for download with their Twitter clone” and that, consequently, his IP address was blocked because “he was clearly not trusted”.

Chris Best, CEO of Substack, was quick to respond, stating that nothing previously mentioned by Musk was true. “Obviously links to substacks have been severely restricted on Twitter”, mentions. Best also claims that they have been using the Twitter API for years and believe they are in compliance with the social network’s terms and conditions. He also asks if this is not the case, Twitter offers an explanation and ends by noting that this whole situation is “very upsetting”.

Elon Musk didn’t respond to Best, but Twitter appears to have loosened restrictions on Substack. The mogul’s measure, however, is further proof that there is almost no free speech on the social network.