Yoel Roth addresses the question: "Where will Twitter go from here?"
 | By Suein Hwang Business, Economics and Technology Editor, Opinion |
As the head of trust and safety at Twitter, Roth has been on the front lines of the struggle with the surge of information — and disinformation and misinformation — that exploded after the birth of social media. He worked to expose government-backed troll farms that meddle in elections, to introduce tools to defang misinformation and helped make the decision to ban Donald Trump from one of his favorite means of communication after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. |
Elon Musk, who purchased Twitter for $44 billion in late October, had argued that banning Trump had been a mistake. So it came as something of a surprise when days after the purchase, Musk expressed support for Roth. "I recommend following @yoyoel for the most accurate understanding of what's happening with trust & safety at Twitter," Musk tweeted. He reiterated that support when right-wing voices attacked Roth for past tweets critical of the Republican Party and Trump. |
"We've all made some questionable tweets, me more than most, but I want to be clear that I support Yoel," Musk tweeted. "My sense is that he has high integrity, and we are all entitled to our political beliefs." Days later, as huge layoffs and numerous other changes were roiling Twitter, Roth resigned. |
This guest essay by Roth offers a fresh, nuanced and enormously helpful perspective on the future of Twitter under Musk and on the powerful forces controlling the information we see, and don't see, in this digital age. |
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