Jack Dorsey says he’s against permanent bans on Twitter, with an asterisk – TechCrunch
On Friday afternoon, former Twitter executive Jack Dorsey turned to the platform he co-created to talk about its future, days after the company was acquired by Elon Musk for $44 billion. In the string of ambiguityDorsey said he doesn’t believe in permanent bans, except for illegal activity.
“As I’ve said before, I don’t believe any permanent ban (except for illegal activity) is right, or should be. This is why we needed a protocol that was resilient to the layers above,” said Dorsey, who resigns from his role at Twitter in November 2021 and is currently active as Head of Division of Block.
While Dorsey’s subject is unnamed, he’s likely referring to some of the most controversial Twitter moments that have surfaced amid Musk’s purchase of Twitter – including the platform’s choice to ban the former President. President Donald J. Trump from the platform and the temporary ban of The New York Post after it published an article related to the Hunter laptop of the son of US President Joe Biden. The social media giant’s chief legal officer Vijaya Gadde was recently attacked online from trolls after Musk posted a meme about her.
In this stormy mind, Dorsey’s words today shed light on his stance on whether controversial figures, even those spreading misinformation, should be allowed to appear. on this platform or not.
“Some things can be fixed immediately, and others require rethinking and re-implementing the entire system. It’s important to me that we get critical feedback in all its forms, but it’s also important that we have the space and time to address that. All of that should be done publicly,” Dorsey said in the same Twitter thread.
Earlier this week, Dorsey said that “Elon is the only solution that I believe in… I believe in his mission to expand the light of consciousness.” But, there’s a tension there: If Dorsey trusts Musk, but Musk tweets memes at the expense of Twitter’s executive team, is Twitter really on its way to becoming more transparent? As Dorsey put it, the company needed “space and time to work through” some of its most important feedback. Spirit plays a role in rebuilding.
“What’s important is how the service works and operates and how quickly it learns and improves,” Dorsey said in today’s storm of tweets. “My biggest failure was the quick part. I believe at least part of it is being worked out and will be fixed. “