NBCUniversal Executive Linda Yaccarino Takes Helm At Twitter
Written by: Katie Scott, business reporter
Elon Musk’s erratic tenure as CEO of Twitter has come to an end with the appointment of a new chief executive.
Linda Yaccarino, formerly the chairman for global advertising and partnerships, will take up her new role in six weeks, Musk announced on Twitter. NBCUniversal said that she will step down from her current role with immediate effect.
Yaccarino will focus "primarily on business operations", he said, whilst he would “focus on product design & new technology”. He added: "Looking forward to working with Linda to transform this platform into X, the everything app."
The marketing executive inherits a company that has had a rocky journey since Musk bought it more than a year ago. He took over as CEO in October having fired the previous leadership along with half of the company’s staff. In December, Musk said he would resign as chief executive "as soon as I find someone foolish enough to take the job". He has since seen many controversies at the social media platform including
Yaccarino joins with decades of marketing experience. Sky News writes: “She oversaw the merger between NBC and Comcast - the creation of NBCUniversal - and as chairman of the company, managed the market strategy and revenue from advertising - which totalled nearly $10bn (£8bn) for the company's entire portfolio of broadcast, cable and digital assets.” She is also chairman of the Taskforce On The Future Of Work for the World Economic Forum.
Dave Campanelli, chief investment officer of media buying firm Horizon Media, told the news channel: "I think that first and foremost, she'll bring to Twitter an understanding of what advertisers need to see to get back on the platform from the brand safety perspective."
