Outgoing Twitter CEO Elon Musk confirmed rumours he will be appointing NBCUniversal head of advertising Linda Yaccarino as the social media platform’s new female boss, while other rumours suggest the billionaire entrepreneur might also abdicate his executive role at Tesla.
“I am excited to welcome Linda Yaccarino as the new CEO of Twitter,” Musk wrote in a tweet published on Friday. “@LindaYacc will focus primarily on business operations, while I focus on product design & new technology.” Yaccarino announced she’s leaving her current role at NBCUniversal in a statement posted earlier on Friday. “It has been an absolute honor to be part of Comcast NBCUniversal and lead the most incredible team,” she wrote.
Yaccarino has been a chair at NBCUniversal for over 11 years, previously serving as executive vice president/COO of advertising sales, marketing and acquisitions at Turner Broadcasting. According to her LinkedIn profile, she also serves as the executive chair of Taskforce on Future of Work at the World Economic Forum, as well as sits on the global organization’s Media, Entertainment and Culture Industry Governors Steering Committee.
Musk, who will serve as Twitter’s executive chairman and CTO once Yaccarino takes over in six weeks time, faced significant backlash on social media for his CEO pick. “Why would you place a WEF chairman in charge of Twitter,” responded a twitter user. Ever since buying Twitter for $44 billion last year, Musk has been making controversial changes to the platform including extensive job cuts, modifying Twitter’s infamous blue checkmark qualifications, and restoring previously blocked accounts in a nod to embrace free speech.
The twitter CEO has previously criticized the WEF, but assured users that the platform’s “commitment to open source transparency and accepting a wide range of viewpoints remains unchanged.”
In the meantime, a separate report from the Wall Street Journal suggests Musk may also abdicate his role as Tesla’s CEO, with the EV maker’s board of directors considering CFO Zach Kirkhorn as the replacement. The consideration came to light during last year’s trial protesting Musk’s compensation package as being “beyond the bounds of reasonable judgement.” James Murdoch, a Tesla board member, announced that Musk is mulling a potential successor, but refrained from unveiling who that might be.
Information for this briefing was found via The Wall Street and the sources mentioned. The author has no securities or affiliations related to this organization. Not a recommendation to buy or sell. Always do additional research and consult a professional before purchasing a security. The author holds no licenses.
