Who is Linda Yaccarino? Know everything about Twitter's possible new CEO Linda Yaccarino

By Ankita ChakravartiOn Monday Twitter boss and its current CEO Elon Musk announced that the company would get a new CEO soon. How soon? Six weeks, he says. But he did not reveal the name of the person. As soon must announced that she — that is new CEO — will start in her job in six weeks, speculations started around who is this person. One name has come up, and is almost confirmed. This is Linda Yaccarino.

But who is Linda Yaccarino, likely to be the new Twitter CEO? With buzz around Yaccarino potentially becoming the new Twitter CEO growing, many are eager to learn more about her and Musk’s thoughts on her as a potential leader for the company. It’s worth noting that previous Twitter CEOs have all come from a tech background, so if Yaccarino were to assume the role, it would mark the first time a CEO from a non-tech industry leading the company.

Well, Yaccarino is a notable figure in the media industry. She has been with NBCUniversal for more than 20 years and has held a variety of leadership positions. She is currently responsible for all of NBCUniversal’s global advertising and partnerships businesses.

Linda YaccarinoEducational background and role at NBC

Yaccarino completed her graduation from Penn State University, where she studied liberal arts and telecommunications. She began her career at Turner Broadcasting System, where she held a variety of sales and marketing positions. In 1999, she joined NBCUniversal, where she quickly rose through the ranks.

In 2007, Yaccarino was named president of entertainment advertising sales at NBCUniversal. In this role, she was responsible for all of the company’s advertising sales for its entertainment programming, including broadcast, cable, and digital. She was also responsible for developing new advertising products and platforms. It is possible that this is the background because of which Elon Musk is hiring her. The idea seems to be that Yaccarino would run the business and advertisement side of Twitter, a company that is closer to a regular media company than a more traditional social media company like Facebook or Instagram. Whereas on the product and engineering side, Musk will continue to look after teams.

In 2011, Yaccarino was promoted to chairman of global advertising and partnerships at NBCUniversal. In this role, she is responsible for all of the company’s advertising and partnerships businesses, including broadcast, cable, digital, and international. She is also responsible for developing new advertising products and platforms.

Yaccarino’s friendship with Donald Trump

Another possible reason why Musk might have liked Yaccarino is her supposed collaboration with Donald Trump, a figure on the US right. Elon Musk in recent months has increasingly been close to the right wing and Republicans in the US. So, a Twitter CEO who has worked with Donald Trump fits perfectly into the picture. Yaccarino is also known for being an ally of former US president Donald Trump. She was among the people that Trump named to serve a two-year-term on the President’s Council of Sports, Fitness and Nutrition.

Elon Musk’s NBC connection

Elon Musk was seen sharing screen space with Linda Yaccarino at NBCUniversal’s MMA’s Miami event. The two had gathered to discuss the future of marketing at Twitter. Post the interview with Musk, Yaccarino was all praise for Musk and how Twitter is committed to “freedom of speech”, “accountability and “ultimate transparency”.

That said, Yaccarino is not all that active on Twitter, at least not like how Elon Musk is. Before the rumours of her appointment as the Twitter CEO floated on the internet, she had only 7000 followers and had not tweeted for days. Maybe once she assumes the role, she will be as active as the current chief twit.