Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey Answers User Queries: Q&A with the Social Media Mogul

Summary

Jack Dorsey, the co-founder of Twitter, answered various questions from Twitter users in a recent Q&A session. In this blog post, we cover various topics ranging from the origin of the Twitter bird’s name, character limit, identifying Twitter bots, regulating social media platforms, and the absence of an edit button. Jack also clarifies that Twitter does not sell user data but matches ads based on user interests. Furthermore, he talks about his interest in following topics and his trip to Africa to learn from entrepreneurs.

The Origin of the Blackbird as Twitter’s Logo
Regulating Social Media Platforms: Twitter’s Responsibility
Identifying Twitter Bots and Spam Accounts
The Character Limit: Why is it Still 280?
The Absence of an Edit Button
The Acquiring of the Blue Verification Tick
Matching Ads Based on Interests, Not Selling User Data
Following Topics with Twitter
Jack Dorsey’s Trip to Africa

The Origin of the Blackbird as Twitter’s Logo

The Twitter logo is a bird. But why a bird, and why that bird? Jack began by saying the bird was named after the sound a bird makes, i.e., chirping. The founders wanted a logo that was friendly and approachable, and the bird aesthetic worked well for that. They also wanted something that could embody the feeling of being heard, and birds do that too. The typeface of the logo was inspired by Caslon.

Regulating Social Media Platforms: Twitter’s Responsibility

Twitter recently banned political ads, and some users wanted to know from Jack why Twitter is not actively regulating more content on the platform. Jack responded by saying Twitter is actively regulating through technical and human interventions that help users understand what is happening on the platform.

He said that Twitter does not want to be the arbiters of truth but instead wants to empower people to discern what is true and what is not. Jack said that Twitter has a protocol where if the content violates the terms and services of the platform, they will automatically take the content down.

Identifying Twitter Bots and Spam Accounts

Twitter has been under pressure to do more to identify and take down bot accounts on its platform. Jack said that Twitter is actively working on identifying and removing bot accounts to maintain the integrity of the platform. He further mentioned that Twitter has technology and human efforts in place to identify the communication patterns of bots and spam accounts.

According to Jack, Twitter is at the forefront of removing politically motivated misinformation on the platform.

The Character Limit: Why is it Still 280?

A Twitter user asked Jack about the reason behind Twitter’s 280-character limit. Jack responded by saying that characters are one part of Twitter that makes it unique. Twitter was initially designed to work through SMS, and SMS has a limit of 160 characters. They doubled the character limit to accommodate non-English languages that require more characters.

Jack also mentioned that Twitter will continue to experiment with different formats to make tweeting more expressive. He added that Twitter is considering adding more context to tweets to make them more informative.

The Absence of an Edit Button

Twitter users have been asking for an edit button for a long time, but there is still no word on the launch of this feature. Jack explained that Twitter is still trying to figure out how to prevent abuse of edit functionality while also providing a way for users to correct their tweets. Additionally, it’s important to have the contextual flavor and timeline they bring with them intact, so everyone can see and understand the conversation that takes place.

The Acquiring of the Blue Verification Tick

Jack talked about the blue verification tick, stating that the verification system was initially created to prevent impersonation of public figures like celebrities, politicians or journalists. Over time, people have started associating the blue badge with authenticity, which led to Twitter expanding its eligibility criteria for getting a blue tick.

Twitter has verified medical experts, scientists, and researchers in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, ensuring that authentic information is being circulated on the platform. Jack added that verifying every user is not possible as Twitter would need a lot of resources to do so, and there may be subjective criteria involved.

Matching Ads Based on Interests, Not Selling User Data

Some users asked Jack about Twitter selling user data to advertisers. Jack clarified that Twitter does not sell user data to advertisers. Twitter allows advertisers to target users based on their interests, but the platform does not give advertisers access to users’ personal information. Jack also mentioned that users can now see the interests Twitter has assigned to them in their account settings.

Following Topics with Twitter

Jack talked about how Twitter has improved following topics on the platform. Users can now follow topics such as sports or politics to see tweets from a variety of people, not just those they follow. He further added that Twitter is planning to make it easier for users to follow a cluster of accounts all at once.

Jack Dorsey’s Trip to Africa

Jack mentioned his trip to Africa and how he learned a lot from entrepreneurs in the region. He said he was inspired by the creativity and innovation in the African market and was excited to see what comes out of the continent in the future. He also appreciated the diversity of thought that he encountered in Africa.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey addressed various questions ranging from the origin of the Twitter bird’s name, character limit, identifying Twitter bots, regulating social media platforms, and the absence of an edit button. He clarified that Twitter does not sell user data but matches ads based on user interests. Furthermore, he talked about his interest in following topics and his trip to Africa to learn from entrepreneurs.