Zinger Key Points
- Two pranksters fooled several media outlets about getting fired from Twitter recently.
- Musk shares with Benzinga that one of the pranksters can have his fake job back.
It’s been a rough two weeks for fictional character Rahul Ligma. In the span of a couple of weeks, Ligma was fired from both Twitter and FTX. Here’s what happened and what Tesla Inc TSLA and Twitter CEO Elon Musk had to say.
What Happened: After acquiring Twitter for $44 billion, it was widely reported that the social media company would lay off employees. Several media outlets waited outside Twitter headquarters, and some fell for a prank involving a fictional Twitter employee who went by the name of Rahul Ligma.
Another fired employee said his name was Daniel Johnson.
The two fictional employees were carrying cardboard boxes and appeared to be taking their belongings from the headquarters.
CNBC reporter Dierdre Bosa was among the reporters fooled by the stunt.
“It’s happening. The entire team of data engineers let go. These are two of them. They are visibly shaken. Daniel tells us he owns a Tesla and doesn’t know how he will make payments,” Bosa tweeted.
The internet widely shared the video and quickly saw the pun played out by the two pranksters' names.
Elon Musk responded to a tweet that said actors trolled the media.
“Ligma Johnson had it coming,” Musk said.
Bosa later apologized and deleted the original tweet.
“About Friday at Twitter HQ – I didn’t do enough to confirm and I regret the mistake,” Bosa tweeted.
The same person posing as Rahul Ligma recently said he was fired from bankrupt cryptocurrency platform FTX along with the entire team of data engineers working at FTX headquarters in the Bahamas.
“It’s really tough, this is my second job in a month,” Ligma said in the video. “Web2 chewed me up and spit me out, I just really thought Web3 was gonna be different.”
Ligma said he just moved to the Bahamas and “everything changed so quickly.”
The “employee” said he was open to new opportunities and “looking for the best for the future.”
Related Link: Elon Musk's Reason For Buying Twitter: 'I Didn't Do It To Make Money, I Did It To Try To Help Humanity'
Why It’s Important: While Ligma and Johnson were fictional Twitter employees, the company has been downsizing since the acquisition.
Included in the firings by Musk is Twitter employee Eric Frohnhoefer who worked for the social media company for eight years. Frohnhoefer engaged with Musk on Twitter in a post about the slow speeds of the app.
Frohnhoefer publicly told Musk that his comments about the Twitter app were incorrect.
Musk later replied that Frohnhoefer had been fired from Twitter. Another Twitter employee who challenged Musk over the same issue was also fired by the company.
Twitter account Unusual Whales tweeted that Musk had fired numerous employees who were critical of him on Twitter and over the company’s internal Slack messaging system.
Musk offered an apology in a reply tweet.
“I would like to apologize for firing these geniuses. Their immense talent will no doubt be of great use elsewhere,” Musk said.
While Fronhoefer and other real Twitter employees are out of work, Musk told Benzinga that the two fictional fired Twitter employees might be in luck and can have their jobs back.
Ligma & Johnson are welcome back anytime
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 15, 2022
Musk is known for posting memes and having interactions with people on Twitter, which could be part of the reason why he is the second most followed person on the platform.
Read Next: 51 Facts And Figures About Elon Musk
Photo: Courtesy of shutterstock.com and Thomas Hawk on flickr
© 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
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