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May 13 (Reuters) – Newly appointed Twitter CEO Linda Yaccarino said in a tweet on Saturday that she is inspired by owner Elon Musk’s vision to create a brighter future and is excited to help build the social media platform. transform.
It was Yaccarino’s first public speaking since news broke on Thursday that she was in talks to become Twitter’s next CEO. Musk, who has been CEO since his $44 billion buyout of Twitter last October, announced her appointment on Friday.
“I’ve long been inspired by (Musk’s) vision to create a better future. I’m excited to help bring this vision to Twitter and transform this company together!” Yaccarino tweeted.
Yaccarino, who spent several years modernizing the advertising business as advertising chief for Comcast Corp.’s NBCUniversal, said she is committed to the future of Twitter and that user feedback is essential to building Twitter 2.0.
Yaccarino will acquire a social media platform that has been trying to reverse a decline in ad revenue and is beset by challenges and heavy debt.
Since Musk took over Twitter, advertisers have fled the platform, worried their ads could appear next to inappropriate content after the company lost nearly 80% of its staff. Musk acknowledged earlier this year that Twitter had suffered a massive drop in ad revenue.
While Musk said Yaccarino would help build an “everything app,” which he previously said could offer a variety of services, such as peer-to-peer payments, his selection of an advertising veteran indicated that digital advertising would remain a core focus. from the company.
Musk has long said he intended to find a new leader for Twitter.
Musk, who is also the CEO of electric vehicle maker Tesla Inc, said on Friday that appointing Yaccarino as Twitter’s new chief will help him spend more time on Tesla. (Reporting by Juby Babu in Bengaluru; editing by Leslie Adler)
