Yaccarino successfully convinced Musk to avoid tweeting after 3 AM, emphasizing the risk of controversy.
Linda Yaccarino has been officially confirmed as the new CEO of Twitter by Elon Musk. Yaccarino emerged as the sole candidate mentioned during Musk's search for a new leader. With over 20 years of experience at NBCUniversal and a longstanding relationship with Musk, Yaccarino is set to join the company in the coming six weeks. Notably, during an interview, Yaccarino persuaded Musk to avoid tweeting after 3 AM, expressing concerns about potential controversies. Although he accepted her suggestion, Musk maintained his independence by asserting his autonomy in decision-making.
In 2022, Elon Musk approached Linda Yaccarino, CEO of NBCUniversal's advertising division, for an interview regarding his potential acquisition of Twitter.
During their discussion, Yaccarino expressed her apprehension about Musk's habit of tweeting after 3 am, citing the potential for controversy and harm to Twitter's reputation.
"For example, you've said you probably shouldn't tweet after 3 a.m.," Yaccarino said. "Will you commit to being a little more specific and not tweet after 3 a.m.?” she had asked.
Initially, Musk was defensive regarding his tweeting habits, asserting his use of Twitter for direct communication with followers and refusing to alter his behavior based on others' opinions.
However, Yaccarino continued to assert her point. She emphasized Musk's responsibility as Twitter's owner to exercise caution in his statements and highlighted the potential unprofessionalism of his late-night tweets, which could hinder Twitter's ability to attract advertisers. Eventually, Musk acquiesced to Yaccarino's appeal. While he expressed his intention to "aspire to tweet less after 3 a.m.," he made it clear that he wouldn't let others dictate his speech, emphasizing the importance of preserving freedom of expression. "That would be a diminishment of freedom of speech," Musk stated.
In an announcement made on Friday evening via a tweet, Musk introduced Linda Yaccarino as the new CEO of Twitter. He expressed his enthusiasm in welcoming her and outlined their respective roles, stating, "I am excited to welcome Linda Yaccarino as the new CEO of Twitter! @LindaYacc will focus primarily on business operations, while I focus on product design & new technology. Looking forward to working with Linda to transform this platform into X, the everything app."
