Musk should not get unusual power on Twitter’s board, but he may be a special case, corporate governance expert says.
News on Tuesday that Twitter is appointing to its board Tesla CEO Elon Musk — who has questioned the platform’s commitment to free speech and recently bought a 9.2% stake in the company — brought hope to conservatives seeking to have former President Donald Trump allowed back on the social network. But Twitter on Tuesday said it had no plans to bring back Trump, who was permanently banned from the San Francisco micro-blogging firm’s platform two days after his supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan.6,2021 in a failed bid to overturn the presidential election. Twitter in a blog post cited “the risk of further incitement of violence.” Although Twitter’s board “plays an important advisory and feedback role,” the company said in an emailed statement, “Our policy decisions are not determined by the board or shareholders, and we have no plans to reverse any policy decisions.” Corporate governance expert Jo-Ellen Pozner, a professor at Santa Clara University’s Leavey School of Business, said the addition of one person to a public company’s board should not make a major difference in its policies, but that Musk may be a special case at Twitter. “The fact that he took a $2 billion-plus position in this company and got on the board right away suggests he is being paid deference and might demand deference that most people would not be able to command,” Pozner said. “I would not be surprised if there were shakeups of various sorts following this development.” Musk in a series of tweets in March questioned Twitter’s adherence to principles of free expression. He put up a Twitter poll, saying, “Free speech is essential to a functioning democracy. Do you believe Twitter rigorously adheres to this principle?” He added, “The consequences of this poll will be important.
