Getty Images© Getty Images
Esther Crawford, a leader at Elon Musk's Twitter, said on social media that she "grew up in a cult."
Crawford has become a key player in Musk's takeover and went viral for sleeping in the office.
Some workers describer her as "bootlicking," while other say she's helped guide Musk.
Esther Crawford, one of Elon Musk's top lieutenants at Twitter, "grew up in a cult."
Before the billionaire bought Twitter in October, Crawford tweeted about the experience, saying it taught her a lot, including the importance of changing your mind when presented with new facts.
"We had lots of rules (can't cut hair, no makeup, no pants, no tv, no secular music, etc) and hierarchical leadership," Crawford wrote in a tweet on April 16, 2022. "We believed it was the 'end times' so I lived in fear of doing anything wrong & being left behind. I exited on my own when I was 19."
She also shared a photo of herself growing up and with a current picture.
Crawford and a spokesperson for Twitter did not respond to requests for comment from Insider ahead of publication.
DailymotionElon Musk defends himself in lawsuit over Tesla tweet
0:31
While Crawford did not specify exactly what "cult" she grew up in, she did say in an earlier tweet that it was a "very small/insular community" and a sect Christianity.
The Financial Times was the first to report on Crawford's history. She went on to get a bachelor's degree in philosophy at Oregon State University, and a master's in international relations and national securities studies at Durham University, per her LinkedIn.
Crawford worked at a startup in Silicon Valley that was acquired by Twitter in 2020, her LinkedIn profile shows. She also was a social media strategist for Weight Watchers between 2007 to 2012.
At Twitter, she serves as the director of product management and has quickly become one of Musk's top executives at the company. She first garnered public attention in the weeks after Musk took over the company when a picture of her sleeping in the office went viral. Since, she has survived multiple rounds of layoffs at the social media company.
While Crawford appears to have made a positive impression on Musk, some of her coworkers are less impressed. One current employee, who preferred to remain anonymous, told the Financial Times that "the sleeping bag incident really bothered people."
A former staffer who said Crawford was "bootlicking" told the publication that "she was willing to sell her soul for her 15 mins of fame."
The FT reported that Crawford introduced herself to Musk on his first day in the office and set up a one-on-one meeting with the billionaire — a move she was later scolded for by a more senior employee.
Meanwhile, other current and former employees told the FT that Crawford is "diplomatic and empathetic" and has played a crucial role in guiding Musk, including by helping smooth tensions with Apple after the billionaire declared "war" on the tech giant and helping temper him behind the scenes.
Elon Musk thinks Twitter is real life
Story by Andrew J. Hawkins • The Verge
This should come as no surprise, but Elon Musk doesn’t see a downside to being extremely online.
Asked whether his recent tweets — spreading tawdry conspiracy theories about the attack on Nancy Pelosi’s husband, embracing COVID misinformation, mocking trans people, making groan-inducing, jokes, and exposing himself as a right-wing troll — has harmed Tesla’s brand image, Musk responded with characteristic mocking defiance.
Okay, so I’ve got 127 million followers and it continues to grow very rapidly
“Let me check my Twitter account,” he said in a Tesla earnings call Wednesday evening. “Okay, so I’ve got 127 million followers and it continues to grow very rapidly.”
Apparently the steady growth of his own Twitter presence is all the evidence he needs that his tweets are right and good and his online antics are beyond reproach. No mention of the white supremacists he’s let back on the platform (and then kicked off again after they have reverted to type and said Nazi things) or the worrying rise in hate speech and harassment. No mention of his own declining reputation or the growing calls to ditch his post at Twitter and refocus on the company that actually matters, Tesla.
Just look at that scoreboard.
“That suggests that I’m reasonably popular,” Musk continued. “Might not be popular with some people. But for the vast majority of people, the follow account speaks for itself.”
It’s a bizarre statement from someone who is quite literally on trial on the basis that his tweets have caused measurable chaos, both for himself, his investors, and his company. Musk is facing potentially billions of dollars in damages from a class of Tesla investors who allege that Musk’s tweets misled them and said that relying on his statements to make trades cost them significant amounts of money.
“I’m reasonably popular”
That 2018 tweet has already cost him $40 million — $20 million from Tesla and $20 million from him personally — in order to settle a securities fraud lawsuit from the SEC. Twitter is free for most people to use, but for Elon Musk, the costs have been disproportionately high.
On the earnings call, Musk rattled off a quick pitch for Twitter, noting that it’s an “incredibly powerful tool” that drives demand for Tesla’s vehicles (the company just instituted a massive price cut to account for flagging demand) and suggesting that other automotive CEOs should tweet like him to drive sales. (Volkswagen CEO Herbert Diess tried doing exactly that; he was out of a job a year later.)
It’s fair to say that Musk’s Twitter usage has been a disaster. His acquisition of the social media company has diminished his own net worth and left him saddled with debt. A growing number of Tesla owners who bought into his early claims of a more sustainable future are now embarrassed to be seen driving one of his cars. His investors are begging him to stop tweeting, but of course, Elon Musk will never stop.
Twitter, it is often said, is not real life. But to Musk, it’s all that and more.
Esther Crawford, a leader at Elon Musk's Twitter, said on social media that she "grew up in a cult."
Crawford has become a key player in Musk's takeover and went viral for sleeping in the office.
Some workers describer her as "bootlicking," while other say she's helped guide Musk.
Esther Crawford, one of Elon Musk's top lieutenants at Twitter, "grew up in a cult."
Before the billionaire bought Twitter in October, Crawford tweeted about the experience, saying it taught her a lot, including the importance of changing your mind when presented with new facts.
"We had lots of rules (can't cut hair, no makeup, no pants, no tv, no secular music, etc) and hierarchical leadership," Crawford wrote in a tweet on April 16, 2022. "We believed it was the 'end times' so I lived in fear of doing anything wrong & being left behind. I exited on my own when I was 19."
She also shared a photo of herself growing up and with a current picture.
Crawford and a spokesperson for Twitter did not respond to requests for comment from Insider ahead of publication.
Related video: Elon Musk defiantly defends himself in Tesla tweet trial (France 24)Duration 1:49 View on Watch
DailymotionElon Musk defends himself in lawsuit over Tesla tweet
0:31
While Crawford did not specify exactly what "cult" she grew up in, she did say in an earlier tweet that it was a "very small/insular community" and a sect Christianity.
The Financial Times was the first to report on Crawford's history. She went on to get a bachelor's degree in philosophy at Oregon State University, and a master's in international relations and national securities studies at Durham University, per her LinkedIn.
Crawford worked at a startup in Silicon Valley that was acquired by Twitter in 2020, her LinkedIn profile shows. She also was a social media strategist for Weight Watchers between 2007 to 2012.
At Twitter, she serves as the director of product management and has quickly become one of Musk's top executives at the company. She first garnered public attention in the weeks after Musk took over the company when a picture of her sleeping in the office went viral. Since, she has survived multiple rounds of layoffs at the social media company.
While Crawford appears to have made a positive impression on Musk, some of her coworkers are less impressed. One current employee, who preferred to remain anonymous, told the Financial Times that "the sleeping bag incident really bothered people."
A former staffer who said Crawford was "bootlicking" told the publication that "she was willing to sell her soul for her 15 mins of fame."
The FT reported that Crawford introduced herself to Musk on his first day in the office and set up a one-on-one meeting with the billionaire — a move she was later scolded for by a more senior employee.
Meanwhile, other current and former employees told the FT that Crawford is "diplomatic and empathetic" and has played a crucial role in guiding Musk, including by helping smooth tensions with Apple after the billionaire declared "war" on the tech giant and helping temper him behind the scenes.
Elon Musk thinks Twitter is real life
Story by Andrew J. Hawkins • The Verge
This should come as no surprise, but Elon Musk doesn’t see a downside to being extremely online.
Asked whether his recent tweets — spreading tawdry conspiracy theories about the attack on Nancy Pelosi’s husband, embracing COVID misinformation, mocking trans people, making groan-inducing, jokes, and exposing himself as a right-wing troll — has harmed Tesla’s brand image, Musk responded with characteristic mocking defiance.
Okay, so I’ve got 127 million followers and it continues to grow very rapidly
“Let me check my Twitter account,” he said in a Tesla earnings call Wednesday evening. “Okay, so I’ve got 127 million followers and it continues to grow very rapidly.”
Apparently the steady growth of his own Twitter presence is all the evidence he needs that his tweets are right and good and his online antics are beyond reproach. No mention of the white supremacists he’s let back on the platform (and then kicked off again after they have reverted to type and said Nazi things) or the worrying rise in hate speech and harassment. No mention of his own declining reputation or the growing calls to ditch his post at Twitter and refocus on the company that actually matters, Tesla.
Related video: Elon Musk defiantly defends himself in Tesla tweet trial (France 24)Duration 1:49 View on Watch
Just look at that scoreboard.
“That suggests that I’m reasonably popular,” Musk continued. “Might not be popular with some people. But for the vast majority of people, the follow account speaks for itself.”
It’s a bizarre statement from someone who is quite literally on trial on the basis that his tweets have caused measurable chaos, both for himself, his investors, and his company. Musk is facing potentially billions of dollars in damages from a class of Tesla investors who allege that Musk’s tweets misled them and said that relying on his statements to make trades cost them significant amounts of money.
“I’m reasonably popular”
That 2018 tweet has already cost him $40 million — $20 million from Tesla and $20 million from him personally — in order to settle a securities fraud lawsuit from the SEC. Twitter is free for most people to use, but for Elon Musk, the costs have been disproportionately high.
On the earnings call, Musk rattled off a quick pitch for Twitter, noting that it’s an “incredibly powerful tool” that drives demand for Tesla’s vehicles (the company just instituted a massive price cut to account for flagging demand) and suggesting that other automotive CEOs should tweet like him to drive sales. (Volkswagen CEO Herbert Diess tried doing exactly that; he was out of a job a year later.)
It’s fair to say that Musk’s Twitter usage has been a disaster. His acquisition of the social media company has diminished his own net worth and left him saddled with debt. A growing number of Tesla owners who bought into his early claims of a more sustainable future are now embarrassed to be seen driving one of his cars. His investors are begging him to stop tweeting, but of course, Elon Musk will never stop.
Twitter, it is often said, is not real life. But to Musk, it’s all that and more.
No comments:
Post a Comment