Elon Musk’s Twitter ends Trust and Safety Council

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Elon Musk’s Twitter made another dramatic move Monday night, disbanding the Trust and Safety Council.



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The Volunteer Council was disbanded by email shortly before a scheduled Zoom meeting with Twitter execs, reports the Washington Post. Sources told After that members expecting to meet instead received a message with “Thanks” in the subject line. The text stated that the council was not ideal for bringing “outside insights” into Twitter as a product or for “policy development work”.

Here’s more of the After:

Dozens of civil rights leaders, academics and advocates from around the world have volunteered for years to help improve security on the platform.

“We are grateful for your involvement, advice and cooperation over the years and wish you every success in the future,” said the email, which was simply signed “Twitter”.

A source who spoke anonymously to the paper for fear of harassment said Twitter was dumping “years of institutional memory” and that “outside experts and lawyers looking at your services are making you smarter.”

The board’s demise came after Musk attacked former Twitter executive Yoel Roth over the weekend. Once tasked with trust and security oversight, Roth and his family reportedly had to do just that flee their home in San Francisco after Musk tweeted statements misrepresenting Roth’s academic studies regarding sexual activity and minors.

Roth and other Twitter users who chatted with him also received threats, with a source close to Roth telling After that Roth’s loved ones and acquaintances deleted their accounts out of fear.

Roth remained in his role as head of trust and security for two weeks after Musk’s takeover of Twitter, defending his new boss in interviews about the switch. By mid-November, Roth had resigned and later published an op-ed in the New York Times saying he left Twitter in part because “a Twitter whose policies are dictated by an edict has little need for a trust and security function dedicated to its principled development.”