Dorsey said he’s resigning of his own accord, but rumors are swirling that he walked before he was pushed. Regardless, Agrawal had a low profile that may have appealed to Dorsey’s detractors. His appointment, however, has sparked debate about one contentious topic: the balance between free speech and content moderation.
New rules
Twitter’s moderation strategy shifted during Dorsey’s stint as CEO. While the company once had a laissez-faire approach, it became more hands-on amid mounting concerns about misinformation and hate speech. In recent years, Twitter has banned political ads, launched new misinformation warnings, and introduced a controversial “hacked materials” label. The company also famously fact-checked and then banned former President Donald Trump. Dorsey defended the move, but expressed unease about “the power an individual or corporation has over a part of the global public conversation.”
— jack⚡️ (@jack) January 14, 2021 Agrawal will also have to draw lines between free expression and harmful speech.
A balancing act
The new CEO’s past comments on moderation have already sparked fierce debate. In a 2020 interview with MIT Technology Review, Agarwal said Twitter focused more on potential harms than arbitrating truth: Conservatives and free speech activists warn the comments are a portent of growing censorship. Yet other critics are more concerned about curbing misinformation and hate speech. Agarwal’s approach to these tensions will be a defining issue of his tenure as CEO.
