In first thread, Twitter's new CEO emphasises freedom of speech
Technology
'Twitter is on a mission to become the world’s most accurate real-time information source'
(Web Desk) - Twitter's new CEO Linda Yaccarino has emphasized the firm’s focus on free speech, a favourite topic of owner Elon Musk.
In her first tweet thread since assuming the charge last week, she wrote: “Twitter is on a mission to become the world’s most accurate real-time information source and a global town square for communication,” adding: “That’s not an empty promise.”
To “drive civilization forward,” she said people should have access to an “unfiltered exchange of information and open dialogue about the things that matter most to us.”
Since acquiring Twitter for $44 billion last year and subsequently decline in its value owing to a shifting market and drop in advertising, Musk has restored many accounts that had previously been blocked over community violations.
But Mr Musk has also shut accounts of various people including journalists who have been critical of him.
— Linda Yaccarino (@lindayacc) June 12, 2023
Here’s the full memo Yaccarino sent to employees:
Hello Twitter!
People keep asking me: Why Twitter? So, I’ll tell you.
From space exploration to electric vehicles, Elon knew these industries needed transformation, so he did it. More recently it has become increasingly clear that the global town square needs transformation — to drive civilization forward through the unfiltered exchange of information and open dialogue about the things that matter most to us.
Have you ever been talking with someone particularly insightful and thought, You’re brilliant — everybody should get the chance to hear this. Or, I’m learning so much from you — can we do this again? Or maybe it’s as simple as, You should have the freedom to speak your mind. We all should.
Enter Twitter 2.0.
Twitter is on a mission to become the world’s most accurate real-time information source and a global town square for communication. We’re on the precipice of making history — and that’s not an empty promise. That’s OUR reality.
When you start by wrapping your arms around this powerful vision, literally everything is possible. You have to genuinely believe — and work hard for that belief. And in this moment of complete reinvention, we have the opportunity to reach across aisles, create new partnerships, celebrate new voices, and build something together that can change the world. And from what I can tell so far, you’re built for this.
The success of Twitter 2.0 is all of our responsibility.
We need to think big.
We need to transform.
We need to do it all together.
And we can do it all by starting from first principles — questioning our assumptions and building something new from the ground up. It’s rare to have the chance to put a new future into the hands of every person, partner, and creator on the planet.
That’s exactly why I’m here — with all of YOU.
So, let’s dig our heels in (4 inches or flat!) and build Twitter 2.0 together.
Linda
