© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: Twitter emblem and a photograph of Elon Musk are displayed by way of magnifier on this illustration taken October 27, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Picture/File Picture
By Chavi Mehta, Sheila Dang and Daybreak Chmielewski
(Reuters) – Elon Musk stated on Thursday he has discovered a brand new chief govt for Twitter, however didn’t identify the particular person, whereas the Wall Avenue Journal reported that Comcast (NASDAQ:) NBCUniversal govt Linda Yaccarino was in talks for the job.
Musk stated in a tweet: “Excited to announce that I’ve employed a brand new CEO for X/Twitter. She might be beginning in ~6 weeks!”
Musk stated he’ll transition to the function of chief expertise officer of the social media platform inside the subsequent few weeks.
Musk, who took over as CEO of Twitter when he accomplished his $44 billion buy of the corporate in October, stated in December that he would step apart as CEO as soon as he discovered “somebody silly sufficient to take the job.” He stated that he would then run Twitter’s software program and servers groups.
The WSJ cited individuals conversant in the scenario in saying that Yaccarino was in talks for the highest put up.
Reuters reported after Musk’s tweet that Yaccarino could possibly be his alternative to guide Twitter, based on a Silicon Valley govt and a former Hollywood govt who spoke on situation of anonymity.
Yaccarino, the highest promoting gross sales govt at NBCUniversal, interviewed Musk at an promoting convention in Miami final month.
On the convention, Yaccarino inspired the viewers to welcome Musk with applause and lauded his work ethic.
“Lots of you on this room know me, and you understand I delight myself on my work ethic,” she stated, including, “Buddy, I met my match.”
Yaccarino joined NBCU in 2011, after 15 years at Turner Leisure and has been credited with dragging the community’s advert gross sales operation into the digital future.
As broadcast tv audiences migrated to streaming, she took to the stage at Radio Metropolis Music Corridor final 12 months to inform advertisers that their model messages weren’t an afterthought.
Yaccarino didn’t reply to calls searching for touch upon Thursday.
When requested for remark, an NBCUniversal spokesperson stated, “Linda is in back-to-back rehearsals for the Upfront,” referring to a presentation NBCUniversal will host for advertisers in New York on Monday.
Yaccarino’s exit can be one other huge blow to the corporate after Comcast stated final month that NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell (LON:) was leaving after acknowledging an inappropriate relationship with a lady within the firm, following a grievance that prompted an investigation.
“ANCHOR IS LOOSENED”
Musk has beforehand not named any potential candidates.
Hypothesis was rife on Thursday amongst tech and media insiders and on Blind, an nameless messaging app for tech staff.
Former Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer, former YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki and a high govt at Musk’s brain-chip startup Neuralink, Shivon Zilis, have been amongst names that have been being mentioned.
Musk, who has come below fireplace from traders in his Tesla (NASDAQ:) electrical automotive firm as being distracted by his consideration to Twitter, stated he’ll transition to the function of Twitter’s govt chair, together with the function of CTO, overseeing product, software program and system operations.
Musk’s put up a couple of new Twitter CEO took place quarter-hour earlier than the shut of Wall Avenue on Thursday, and Tesla shares closed 2% larger. The shares rose an extra 1.6% in after-hours commerce.
“The boat anchor known as Twitter is loosened from Musk’s ankle. Now he can get again to spending extra time creating worth at Tesla,” stated Craig Irwin, analyst at Roth MKM.
Musk has lengthy stated he meant to discover a new chief for Twitter.
In a Twitter ballot began by Musk in December, 57.5% customers voted for him to step down as CEO of the social media platform.
The billionaire’s first two weeks as Twitter’s proprietor in October have been marked by fast change. He shortly fired Twitter’s earlier CEO, Parag Agrawal, and different senior leaders, after which laid off half its workers in November.
Musk, a self-proclaimed “free speech absolutist,” has stated he took over Twitter to forestall the platform from turning into an echo chamber for hate and division.
He additionally stated he would “defeat” spam bots on the platform, a key space of his tussle with Twitter’s board over his backwards and forwards on the buyout of the corporate.
He stated final month that Twitter was “roughly breaking even.”
