Trump meets Twitter boss
April 24, 2019
US President Donald Trump met with Twitter Chief Executive Jack Dorsey on Tuesday, reportedly badgering him on why he has lost so many followers on Twitter.
The meeting came after Trump criticized the platform for its supposed bias against conservatives and after its shares surged on earnings reports.
"Great meeting this afternoon at the White House with Jack from Twitter. Lots of subjects discussed regarding their platform, and the world of social media in general. Look forward to keeping an open dialogue!" Trump tweeted after the meeting.
Dorsey replied: "Thank you for the time. Twitter is here to serve the entire public conversation, and we intend to make it healthier and more civil. Thanks for the discussion about that."
Read more: #ToxicTwitter: Do we need a new culture of debate?
Reuters news agency, citing an unnamed insider, reported that Trump spent a good portion of the meeting questioning Dorsey on why his follower count had dropped on Twitter.
Dorsey reportedly told him this was due to the company weeding out fraudulent and spam accounts, especially in the wake of misinformation attempts during the 2016 US presidential election campaign.
Twitter said they discussed a range of matters, including "Twitter's commitment to protecting the health of the public conversation ahead of the 2020 US elections and efforts underway to respond to the opioid crisis."
With 60 million followers, Trump is an avid user of Twitter to communicate directly with his base and the wider world, often using the platform for international diplomacy.
Read more: 'Thoughtful tech' leader on how to re-align technology with human interests
In October he complained that Twitter had removed many people from his follower list, and complained it was biased. On Tuesday he reiterated those claims, saying Twitter would be doing much better were it not for its "political games."
Twitter shares soared more than 15% on Tuesday after a surprisingly robust quarterly report.
aw/se (Reuters, AP, AFP)
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