What's going on?

Elon Musk reportedly laid out plans this week to cut half of Twitter�s workforce.

What does this mean?

It was back in the heady days of early spring that Elon Musk first offered to buy Twitter, and it�s taken him till past spooky season to make good on his offer. The interim�s been pretty chaotic, but a whirlwind of back-and-forths, legal challenges and defenses ultimately forced the deal through � and now the world�s richest man is on a cost-cutting crusade. Little wonder, either: markets have tumbled drastically since April, meaning it�s likely Musk seriously overpaid for the big blue bird. That�s probably only strengthening his resolve to bid adieu to 3,700 employees, half Twitter�s entire workforce.

Why should I care?

Zooming in: Free speech, empty pockets.
Cutting costs is just one side of the equation: Twitter needs to start bringing in more dough too, and that could prove trickier. See, Musk�s vision of Twitter as a bastion of free speech has got businesses clutching their pearls (tweet this), halting ad spending left, right, and center. Interpublic � one of the world�s biggest ad groups � told its clients to postpone Twitter ads for at least a week, and companies like Carlsberg and General Motors are taking the same tack.

The bigger picture: Born to be blue.
One bright money-raising idea of Musk�s is to charge $8 a month for perks like fewer ads, boosted tweets, and the little blue verification tick that appears next to users� handles � a badge of honor that used to be the preserve of high-falutin� celebs, politicians, and journalists. But the plan�s not without issues: for one, it could ironically make it easier to impersonate people, with any paying, fake account suddenly rubber-stamped in blue. And for another, it could create a potentially ugly divide between those who can and can�t afford the fee, amplifying paying users� voices over everyone else�s.