Twitter Head Of Safety Ella Irwin Steps Down: All You Need To Know
The timing of Irwin's resignation coincides with Twitter's ongoing struggle to maintain its advertiser base.
Ella Irwin, the head of trust and safety at Twitter, has officially resigned from her position, according to a statement provided to Reuters on Thursday. Her departure follows widespread criticism of the social media platform's inadequate measures against harmful content, particularly since its acquisition by billionaire Elon Musk in October.
Irwin, who joined Twitter in June 2022, assumed the role of head of the trust and safety team in November after her predecessor, Yoel Roth, resigned. During her tenure, she was responsible for overseeing content moderation. However, when contacted for further comment, Irwin declined, and Musk has yet to respond to the request for a statement.
The timing of Irwin's resignation coincides with Twitter's ongoing struggle to maintain its advertiser base. Brands have become increasingly cautious about associating their image with unsuitable content on the platform.
Just a few weeks ago, Musk announced the appointment of Linda Yaccarino, the former advertising chief at NBCUniversal, as Twitter's new CEO. This move was likely an effort to address the platform's challenges and boost its standing with advertisers.
Fortune magazine previously reported that Irwin's internal Slack account seemed to have been deactivated, further suggesting her departure from the company.
Since the acquisition by Musk, Twitter has made significant cost-cutting measures, resulting in the termination of numerous employees. Among those affected were individuals involved in preventing harmful and illegal content, safeguarding election integrity, and ensuring the dissemination of accurate information on the site.
Musk has been actively promoting a feature known as Community Notes, which allows users to provide additional context to tweets. This initiative aims to combat the spread of misleading information on the platform.
In addition to internal challenges, Twitter is now facing heightened scrutiny from regulators concerning its content moderation efforts.
Twitter continues to be committed to fully complying with the Digital Services Act and addresses the risks of disinformation within the DSA framework in a manner that reflects Twitter’s unique service and protects user rights and safety, as we follow the objective of becoming the… pic.twitter.com/MSJk5mhkdH
— Twitter Global Government Affairs (@GlobalAffairs) May 29, 2023
The company recently withdrew from a voluntary agreement with the European Union focused on combatting disinformation. However, Twitter emphasised its commitment to complying with forthcoming internet regulations within the EU.
EU industry chief Thierry Breton issued a warning to Twitter, stating that the company could not evade its legal obligations within the EU after opting out of the voluntary agreement. This development suggests that Twitter's actions will be closely monitored by regulatory authorities in the region.
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