Twitter chief responsible for content security resigns after Elon Musk criticism
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) – A top Twitter executive in charge of security and content moderation has left the company, her departure coming on the heels of owner Elon Musk publicly complained about the platform’s handling of posts about transgender people.
The departure pointed to a new wave of unrest among key officials at Twitter since Musk took over last year.
Ella Irwin, Twitter’s head of trust and safety, confirmed her departure in a pair of tweets late Friday. She did not say in the message why she was leaving, but her departure came shortly after Musk criticized Twitter̵[ads1]7;s handling of tweets about a conservative media company’s documentary questioning transgender medical care for children and teenagers.
Musk was responding to complaints from Jeremy Boreing, co-CEO of media company Daily Wire. Boreing said in tweets and retweets from conservative commentators Thursday that Twitter suppressed the film by flagging posts about it as hate speech and keeping the film off trending topics lists.
Boreing tweeted that Twitter canceled a deal to premiere “What is a Woman?” free on the platform “due to two instances of “misgendering.” Twitter rules prohibit knowingly referring to transgender people with the wrong gender or name.
“This was a mistake by a lot of people on Twitter. It’s definitely allowed,” Musk tweeted back. “Whether you agree with using someone’s preferred pronoun or not, not doing so is extremely rude and breaks absolutely no laws. “
Irwin tweeted Friday that “one or two people noticed” that she left the company the day before, and she noted speculation about whether she was fired or quit. She teased that she would post 24 tweets to explain her departure.
Then she revealed that she was only kidding with the long story.
“In all seriousness I resigned but this has been a once in a lifetime experience and I am so grateful to have worked with this amazing team of passionate, creative and hard working people. Will be cheering you all and Twitter as you going!”
Alongside Musk, Irwin had been the most prominent voice of the company’s ever-changing content policy in recent months.
Twitter has struggled to win back advertisers turned off by Musk’s drastic changes and loosened rules against hate speech since he bought Twitter for $44 billion in October. Twitter also has an incoming CEO, Linda Yaccarino, known for decades of media and advertising industry experience, but she hasn’t started yet.
Irwin and Twitter did not respond to requests from The Associated Press for comment.
Twitter has been in turmoil, including mass layoffs and voluntary departures since the billionaire Tesla owner bought the San Francisco company and took it private. The company’s trust and security manager quit shortly after the takeover, and turnover in the top ranks has continued. Last month, Twitter fired two more top executives.
