Twitter CEO Dick Costolo ‘Ashamed’ of Company’s Failure to Deal With Trolls
“We suck at dealing with abuse and trolls on the platform,” Twitter chief says in internal meo
Jordan Chariton | February 5, 2015 @ 5:45 AM
Last Updated: February 5, 2015 @ 5:49 AM
In a leaked internal memo Wednesday, Twitter CEO Dick Costolo concedes his company is failing at dealing with trolling tweeters.
“We suck at dealing with abuse and trolls on the platform and we’ve sucked at it for years,” he said in in a memo obtained by The Verge. “It’s no secret and the rest of the world talks about it every day. We lose core user after core user by not addressing simple trolling issues that they face every day.”
Costolo went on to take full ownership of the problem vowing to fix it.
“I’m frankly ashamed of how poorly we’ve dealt with this issue during my tenure as CEO. It’s absurd. There’s no excuse for it. I take full responsibility for not being more aggressive on this front. It’s nobody else’s fault but mine, and it’s embarrassing. We’re going to start kicking these people off right and left and making sure that when they issue their ridiculous attacks, nobody hears them. Everybody on the leadership team knows this is vital.”
He sent follow up messages going even further, apparently responding to questioning staffers: “I take PERSONAL responsibility for our failure to deal with this as a company. I thought i did that in my note, so let me reiterate what I said, which is that I take personal responsibility for this. I specifically said “It’s nobody’s fault but mine.”
The CEO, whose company’s fourth quarter earnings will be released Thursday, concluded that for Twitter to succeed, its staffers have to be honest:
We HAVE to be able to tell each other the truth, and the truth that everybody in the world knows is that we have not effectively dealt with this problem even remotely to the degree we should have by now, and that’s on me and nobody else. So now we’re going to fix it, and I’m going to take full responsibility for making sure that the people working night and day on this have the resources they need to address the issue, that there are clear lines of responsibility and accountability, and that we don’t equivocate in our decisions and choices.
9 Overnight Internet Sensations: From 'Alex From Target' to 'Hot Mug Shot Guy' (Photos)
Alex Lee, a 16-year-old bag boy at a Dallas Target store, became known simply as "Alex From Target" after a customer snapped his picture and posted it on Twitter. Lee became an overnight Internet sensation and landed a one-on-one with Ellen DeGeneres.
Alex Minsky went viral after his modeling shots hit the web. An Afghanistan vet, Minksy lost a leg after his Humvee ran over a roadside bomb. Instead of hiding his prosthesis, Minsky flaunted it on camera. His pictures became so popular, the California native was invited to New York to sit down with the ladies of "The View."
Chris Crocker, the boy in front of bedsheets tearfully begging people to “Leave Britney (Spears) alone!" got his big break after his video garnered an astounding 4 million views in two days. The YouTube clip inspired dozens of parodies by big-name celebs. He signed a show deal with Logo TV and has since proudly made a transition into gay porn.
Antoine Dodson was interviewed by a local TV crew after an intruder attempted to rape his sister. The interview became an Internet sensation and even got its own auto-tuned song by The Gregory Brothers which sold thousands of copies on iTunes.
Jeremy Meeks became "The Hot Mug Shot Guy" after he was arrested on gun and gang-related charges and his mugshot was posted on the Stockton, California police department's website. Women swooned, and Meeks made the news and reportedly signed a modeling contract worth $30,000.
Sean Kory hit it big after his own mug shot hit the web. Kory was arrested in Santa Cruz, California in November for allegedly assaulting a man dressed up as a Fox News reporter at a Halloween parade.
Chris Kohrs, also known as "The Hot Cop of San Francisco," became a global obsession earlier this year after a stranger on the street snapped his photo. A Facebook page started by one of his fans garnered an eye-popping 50,000 followers in less than a week.
EJ Johnson, son of Los Angeles Lakers legend Magic Johnson, went viral after paparazzi caught him coming out of a West Hollywood restaurant clutching a Birkin bag while holding hands with a male friend. Johnson landed a lead role in E!'s "Rich Kids of Beverly Hills."
Tardar Sauce, better known as "Grumpy Cat," became a Tumblr sensation, soon landing the feline its own movie.
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Teen Alex Lee became a star after an off-the-cuff photo became a social media phenomenon. Here’s TheWrap’s list of people who rode the wave of viral popularity.
Alex Lee, a 16-year-old bag boy at a Dallas Target store, became known simply as "Alex From Target" after a customer snapped his picture and posted it on Twitter. Lee became an overnight Internet sensation and landed a one-on-one with Ellen DeGeneres.
