On Monday, news broke that Jack Dorsey is stepping down from Twitter. In a statement, Twitter said that Chief Technology Officer Parag Agrawal is taking Dorsey’s place.
The news, first reported by CNBC, that the founder and chief executive office of Twitter is leaving his post sent shockwaves throughout the internet. Dorsey was cagey about his reasons for leaving, telling CNBC, “I’ve decided to leave Twitter because I believe the company is ready to move on from its founders.”
Many questions remain unanswered, such as why Dorsey’s departure is effective immediately and whether it has anything to do with an unsuccessful effort to oust him last year. But with Dorsey leaving, many people online had one burning question at the top of their minds: What does this mean for former President Donald Trump?
Earlier this year, Twitter permanently suspended Trump after the Capitol riot. Twitter said it did so “due to the risk of further incitement of violence.” Trump infamously used the social media platform frequently before being banned.
As much as some celebrated his absence, others mourned it—including some of Trump’s critics.
Since then, many have lobbied Twitter to reinstate him. Trump’s even sued to get his bird app privileges back. News that Dorsey’s leaving Twitter inspired a surge in calls for Trump’s suspension to be lifted.
“Whoever replaces Jack Dorsey, can you please let Trump back simply for the memes? Pretty please,” tweeted @JohnWRichKid.
Many people noted the attempted ouster of Dorsey last year by Elliott Management, which took a large stake in the company and was founded by a Republican mega donor.
One even suggested, “The Republicans have now infiltrated Twitter to bring Trump back.”
One of the least plausible suggestions is that Trump should replace Dorsey as CEO.
Others aren’t so sure Dorsey leaving guarantees Trump’s return. A few opined that Dorsey is actually the reason why Trump remained on the platform so long.
“…[Dorsey’s] personal interventions were why Trump (+[Richard] Spencer, Alex Jones) stayed on for so long,” @EmpiricistSL tweeted, adding, “Expect to see a push for an Ellen Pao type CEO to herald mass censorship.”
Pao is a former CEO of Reddit. However, censorship refers to government regulation of speech, not private companies such as Twitter enforcing their terms of service.
Although he’s largely mum about his political views and Open Secrets reports he donated to Democrats in the last election cycle, some have long suspected that Dorsey leans conservative, particularly concerning content on the platform.
Dorsey will remain CEO of Square, a payment processing company.
Read more about Big Tech
| Congress barrels forward with EARN IT Act, determined to end encrypted messaging online |
| How little tech is turning the tide in the fight against big tech |
| FTC warns of ‘huge surge’ in social media scams |
| How the FTC can use ‘data minimization’ to immediately strengthen consumer privacy |
| Sign up to receive the Daily Dot’s Internet Insider newsletter for urgent news from the frontline of online. |
