Musk disbands Twitter Trust & Safety Council

Blimey. Just last night, I wrote:

The Musk-driven Twitter drama is only just getting going, it seems.

And this morning I wake up to this news:

Members of Twitter’s Trust and Safety Council received an email with the subject line, “Thank You,” that informed them the council was no longer “the best structure” to bring “external insights into our product and policy development work.”

Yes, Musk has disbanded Twitter’s Trust and Safety Council. Here’s the full message they received:

The great Twitter dictator

It really does look like Musk’s ruling Twitter by diktat. It’s only six weeks since Musk said this:

And yet, he’s been reinstating people willy-nilly, and using Twitter polls to make decisions. Given that he’s disbanded one of the most prominent external advisory boards, how likely is it he will actually even convene that decision-making committee?

At least some council members could see the writing on the wall, and quit a few days ago:

Closing himself to contrary opinions

Musk isn’t one for seeking contrary opinions, or at least so suggested council member Larry Magid to the Washington Post:

“By disbanding it, we got fired instead of quit,” he said. “Elon doesn’t want criticism, and he really doesn’t want the kind of advice he would very likely get from a safety advisory council, which would likely tell him to rehire some of the staff he got rid of, and reinstate some of the rules he got rid of, and turn the company in another direction from where he is turning it.”

Historically, Twitter has been perceived as an unfocused company with wooly leadership. Those days are clearly over. It’s now the plaything of a highly opinionated billionaire. And the only opinion he’s really considering is his own.