jackdorsey
Latest
Facebook, Twitter are under pressure to investigate #ReleaseTheMemo
The #ReleaseTheMemo social media campaign swelled last week as many, including Wikileaks and Edward Snowden, called for the memo to be released to the public. Now, two members of Congress are asking Twitter and Facebook to look into a potential Russian role in the viral spread of the hashtag campaign.
Twitter COO Anthony Noto resigns to lead a finance startup
If there was one person at Twitter who was more important than co-founder and CEO Jack Dorsey, it was COO Anthony Noto. Now, in what could be big news for the social network, Noto has announced that the rumors are true and he is leaving the company to become CEO of personal finance startup SoFi. Noto will begin his responsibilities leading SoFi on March 1st, but the move is likely to cause some fallout for the imperiled microblogging site.
Twitter's new hate and violence policies go into effect November 22nd
Just a couple of weeks ago, Twitter's CEO Jack Dorsey responded to the #WomenBoycotTwitter movement on his company's microblogging platform with a promise to help Twitter "take a more aggressive stance" toward hate speech and sexual harassment. A few days after that, an internal email showed that the company was taking the promises seriously and widening its crackdown on violent groups and abusive content. The company just tweeted that its new policies will launch on November 22nd.
Twitter closes in on its first-ever profitable quarter
Twitter has updated the world on its financial position for the third quarter of this year, and the outlook is better than it has been for a while. The company has seen monthly active user figures increase, arresting the slide that it had to report across the summer. In addition, net losses have been trimmed down to just $21 million, and if Twitter can improve on its targets in the next three months, it may even turn a profit.
Now Twitter's quest to become a 'safer' place has a schedule
You no longer have to wonder when you'll see Twitter implement the new rules promised by its CEO and outlined in that leaked email. The social network has released a "Safety Calendar," which details when it will roll out a series of new rules to make the platform a safer place. As the internal email said, the company plans to crack down on hate and violence on its website: on November 3rd, it promises to start suspending accounts of "organizations that use violence to advance their cause."
Jack Dorsey responds to #WomenBoycottTwitter: New rules incoming
Last night #WomenBoycottTwitter spread among many high profile accounts that stood in solidarity with "victims of hate and harassment Twitter fails to support." The boycott itself wasn't without controversy and spawned responses including a push to highlight and appreciate women of color on the platform under the hashtag #WOCAffirmation. While many weren't sure it would have any impact, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey responded with a thread promising that after a day spent focusing on "making some critical decisions...We decided to take a more aggressive stance in our rules and how we enforce them." Changes that he says are coming in the next few weeks include "New rules around: unwanted sexual advances, non-consensual nudity, hate symbols, violent groups, and tweets that glorifies violence." Of course, we've heard these kinds of statements from Twitter before, and critics may note it only plans to deal with "violent" groups and overt symbols of hate. Will that be enough to make any real difference in the experiences so many people report on Twitter? Unfortunately, we're still waiting to find out.
#WomenBoycottTwitter protest spreads across social media
Twitter has been home to many hashtag campaigns, but tonight one is trending that's a little different: #WomenBoycottTwitter. Sparked by its "temporary lock" of Rose McGowan's account yesterday, the movement's purpose is to go dark "In solidarity w @rosemcgowan and all the victims of hate and harassment Twitter fails to support." Participants include fellow celebrities, women who have experienced harassment online and men who support its cause.
Twitter suspends Rose McGowan's account (updated)
Over the last week or so, rumors about movie executive Harvey Weinstein have turned into actual reports of sexual harassment and rape by The New York Times and The New Yorker. As a result of those public reports, he has been fired by the board of his own company, while many in Hollywood (and beyond) have come forward to talk more openly about incidents of sexual harassment and assault. One of the most notable voices has been that of actress Rose McGowan, who tweeted last year that her own assault has "been an open secret in Hollywood/Media & they shamed me while adulating my rapist." Tonight, Twitter temporarily pulled the plug on her account.
Twitter proved its priorities are screwed up with just 280 characters
Yesterday, Twitter announced that it would experiment with doubling the character limit in tweets, making the jump from 140 to 280 characters. And, as expected, it didn't take long for people on the internet to start critiquing the move, which is available only to a "small group" for now. Most of the feedback so far seems to be negative, and some are saying it's further evidence of Twitter's reluctance to confront larger issues. Instead of focusing on creating better tools for reporting harassment or acting faster to remove abusive content, the company is rolling out a feature that the majority of its users simply didn't ask for.
Twitter will also be at the Senate's Russia hearings
Social media played a huge part in determining the outcome of the 2016 election, and there's a suspicion that the ad-tracking tools those platforms offer could have been hijacked by nefarious forces. Shortly after news broke that Facebook will appear before a Senate hearing into Russian interference, Wired is reporting that Twitter will do the same.
Twitter’s dilemma: What to do with Trump?
"My use of Twitter is not presidential," said President Donald Trump on Twitter last month, before adding the kicker in emphatic all caps: "it's MODERN DAY PRESIDENTIAL." Yet nearly seven months into his presidency, Trump has so flabbergasted the public with his tweets that there has been a relentless stream of calls for Twitter to suspend his account.
Square's personalized prepaid card is available to everyone
Digital payment service Square has been inviting customers to sign up for its prepaid debit card since May, and is now opening up the program to everyone. On Thursday, the company announced the Square Cash Card is available to order via the Square app or website.
Twitter is gaining more users, losing less money
Twitter has updated us on the state of its business and, if you squint, you can almost see that things are picking up for the service. The company revealed that while revenues fell by $164 million, it managed to trim its quarterly losses down to just $62 million. By comparison, Twitter burned $167 million in the last three months of 2016 and $80 million in the same quarter last year.
Square chief teases a smart debit card
Square Cash's virtual payment card might not be quite so virtual in the future. Company chief Jack Dorsey has teased a strange, all-black Visa debit card that Recode suspects is really a physical Square Cash card. A Square spokesperson declined to comment, so take this with a grain of salt, but there's evidence to suggest there's something to this teaser. You see, Square seriously considered a payment card back in 2014 -- the company is no stranger to exploring the concept of a real-world card that draws from online funds.
Square's payment service arrives in the UK
When Jack Dorsey isn't preoccupied with his CEO role at Twitter, he's also busy running the other company he founded, Square. It's all about money, and is primarily known for little devices that, when paired with its mobile app, quickly get small businesses set up to take card, contactless and mobile payments. Today, the company made its first move into the UK (and Europe, in fact), launching the latest iteration of its Square Reader for £39 (plus VAT), so hopefully you needn't go hungry next time when you walk into your local cafe with a wallet full of plastic.
Twitter admits 'didn't move fast enough' on abuse, changes coming
After years of hearing users cry out about the abuse on its platform and reacting in ways that may have made its problems even worse, Twitter says it's listening. VP of engineering Ed Ho tweeted tonight that "We heard you, we didn't move fast enough last year...We'll be rolling out a number of product changes in the days ahead." Also asserting that changes will continue until there is an impact people can feel, Ho was backed up by Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey tweeting that "We're taking a completely new approach to abuse on Twitter. Including having a more open & real-time dialogue about it every step of the way," and recently-added VP of product Keith Coleman.
Unfollowing @POTUS could be difficult right now (update: explained)
While we only just learned of the transition plan for Obama Administration social media accounts, things aren't going quite as many users expected. Currently, many people have reported that despite unfollowing (or, in some cases, apparently never following) the @POTUS account on Twitter, they checked their accounts and are suddenly following it. According to company CEO Jack Dorsey in a series of tweets, what's happening is an automated process plotted out by the Obama team.
Twitter boss says edit tweet feature is 'definitely needed'
CEO Jack Dorsey asked Twitter users what improvements they most wanted to see, and as you'd expect, he got an avalanche of replies -- over 5,700 so far. The most requested feature was the ability to edit tweets after you've sent them, rather than having to delete and start again. Dorsey agreed that "a form of edit is def needed," and that the company is "thinking a lot about it." However, he thinks anything beyond quick edits would require a changelog, and some users suggested any edits would worsen trust issues with the site.
Twitter spent 2016 pouring gasoline on its fires
Twitter isn't a single entity, but a conglomeration of communities that use the same platform for various purposes. There's weird Twitter, political Twitter -- hell, there's even a cute animal pictures Twitter. Beyond communication in 140-character snippets, there's only one other thing that the service's disparate users can agree on: the fact that the site has failed to fix any of the fundamental problems that have dogged it for years.
Watch Twitter's CEO interview Edward Snowden at 12PM ET
The world's most famous whistleblower, Edward Snowden, will be interviewed by Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey in less than an hour. Those of you who are interested in watching can do so live via the Pardon Snowden Twitter account, and you can also participate by submitting your own questions using the hashtag #AskSnowden. There are no details on what the conversation will be about, but chances are we'll hear something related to Russia "hacking" the US Presidential election and other things of that nature. Tune in at 12:05PM ET.
