Paul Krugman Touts Plan to Leave Twitter for Alternative Site. It's Not Going Well

Liberal pundit and pseudo-economist Paul Krugman has become a prepper of sorts. No, he’s not stocking up on food and supplies to protect himself from a supply chain crisis; he’s preparing to leave Twitter in the event that free speech on the platform becomes unbearable for him.

On Sunday, Krugman announced that he had opened an account on an open-source Twitter alternative “as a precaution” in case he has to ditch Twitter.

“So, I’ve opened a Mastodon account as a precaution against the possible Muskocalypse on this site,” he announced.

Krugman then attempted to explain his actions by saying that he believes Elon Musk’s “apparently uncontrollable nastiness and childishness” (read: dedication to free speech) will “drive away users and advertisers.” Krugman predicts that Twitter’s “usefulness could collapse” as a result.

For added context, I should point out that in 1998, Krugman predicted that “By 2005, it will become clear that the Internet’s impact on the economy has been no greater than the fax machine’s.”

So, I've opened a Mastodon account as a precaution against the possible Muskocalypse on this site: https://t.co/ybVhwQgsyC

Let me talk about motivation, which may be a bit different from other Twitterati 1/

— Paul Krugman (@paulkrugman) November 6, 2022

Related: Jack Dorsey Blames Musk for Tracking Codes Implemented While He Was CEO

So, it’s only been a day since Krugman announced his Twitter backup plan, and I’m amused to inform you that it’s not going well.

“Update: so far things not going well on Mastodon,” he tweeted Monday. “After the initial post, nothing I try to post is showing up. And despite setting it *not* to send an email every time someone follows me, it’s sending them. I hope these are just teething problems.”

Update: so far things not going well on Mastodon. After the initial post, nothing I try to post is showing up. And despite setting it *not* to send an email every time someone follows me, it's sending them. I hope these are just teething problems.

— Paul Krugman (@paulkrugman) November 6, 2022

Oh, Krugman! Always a great source of humor.