Twitter Needs To Change As Jack Steps Down As CEO

Twitter CTO Parag Agrawal takes over as CEO as Jack Dorsey steps down from the position.

Jack Dorsey has been criticised for running the social media platform halfheartedly. When Donald Trump’s account got suspended on Twitter, Jack was reportedly chilling on a private island somewhere.

In recent years, Twitter has fallen behind some of its peers, such as Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat. Despite the tremendous power Twitter holds – the sort that helped toppled governments – some reports say they also struggle to make a profit.

I joined Twitter over 9 years ago and witnessed the lows and highs of the platform.

Twitter Was My Second Home

Firstly, Twitter was my hideout, where I mostly learned about design and got links to some of the most gripping articles ever written. I fell in love with the minimal design and the power of hashtags. Quickly, I talked my friends into joining.

Secondly, Twitter wasn’t a platform for sharing trivial matters like the texture of your hair or how it feels to have a big backside. Such stuff and nonsense belong to Facebook or elsewhere. Twitter was all about the news, what’s currently happening.

Lastly, Twitter instantly connected me to professionals I admired.

Twitter is losing it now.

They bought the micro-video sharing site Vine and soon exterminated it in 2019. The same happened to Periscope. In their attempt to stay hip, they counterfeited ‘Status’ and named it Fleets. That idea, though, couldn’t fly high enough.

Unhesitatingly, they cast it to the dogs. Next comes Spaces, a live audio conversation feature where users can host events and discuss matters.

I love this for its clearness and audio-only feature. It’s easy on our internet data. My hope is that it stays longer than its predecessor, Fleets.

Two things must change on the platform immediately.

Twitter Has Become A Haven For Trolls

Annoying and surprising as it may sound, the platform allows hate and dehumanising speech, insults, and bullying to roam with impunity.

Yes, there’s freedom of speech to protect in the 21st century. But that freedom has a limit and comes with responsibility.

Management is obviously finding it almost impossible to tackle these issues. Some celebrities have chosen to stay off it.

Non-celebrities, especially in Ghana, have found a more convenient way of receiving the coveted blue badge on Twitter.

It’s that simple.

Start trolling celebrities or famous people. Say the most disgusting and hilarious things about them. Annoy them so much they feel uncomfortable and reply. People love to stand by and watch such tweets as entertainment.

In time, you’ll rack up an astronomical amount of

followers and become an influencer. At this point, Twitter considers you a public figure and verifies you when you ask them to. Lastly, stop trolling and keep your account clean.

Twitter needs to tackle this problem head-on by severely punishing or banishing these good-for-nothings from their space. I know the owners feel they’re doing their best in this regard. But their best is far from what we expect.

Twitter must verify accounts that have a positive impact on humanity. Not just those with massive followers.

But why can’t they verify people who decide to register with their passports and sign to adhere to their rules?

Twitter Trends Are Annoying

Do you wrinkle your brow before checking the trends?

For me, yes. I hesitate to tap on trends because I don’t know the sort of worms I’d be exposed

to.

Some names, when they trend, it’s all about nudity,

scandals, sex or porn. You dare not touch them if you want to avoid any nightmare.

When many people talk about a particular subject or word, it takes up a seat among the trends. It’s faulty thinking, however, that because a majority care about a topic, then I will too.

Often I don’t. Because it regularly contains hate speech, tweets that incite anger and divide people.

I should be able to choose topics that trend on my TL. I’m interested in tech, design and sustainability. Those are the stuff I want to see. Not insults of the president or mockery of football players trying to get over a loss.

Put that power in my hands and make the algorithm robust enough to sweep away the hatefulness quickly.