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Working for Elon Musk can be the very definition of precarious employment. The entire Tesla<\/a> Supercharger staff found that out the hard way when they were collectively\u00a0given the sack<\/a>\u00a0with little explanation.\u00a0<\/p>\n Now it\u2019s Joe Benarroch\u2019s turn. The former head of global business operations for X<\/a>\u2014 personally hired by CEO Linda Yaccarino just days into her job\u2014is out after barely more than a year, according to his\u00a0profile<\/a>\u00a0on LinkedIn<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n And the former NBCUniversal global advertising chair could herself be in the crosshairs according to a report by the\u00a0Financial Times<\/em>\u00a0on Sunday.\u00a0Citing<\/a>\u00a0anonymous informed sources, it wrote Yaccarino felt pressured to shake up her management team, firing Benarroch for allegedly failing to properly flag clients in advance that X would soon permit the consensual sharing of porn, citing three sources at the company.\u00a0(Pornography has long been present on Twitter, but it was not previously officially permitted.) <\/p>\n While Benarroch\u2019s reported blindsiding of clients could clearly have negative effects, Musk himself has also provided reasons for them to feel confused. Musk attempted to lure popular streamers away from Twitch by shaming the Amazon-owned rival over its failure to police its own platform for adult content. Flip-flopping just weeks later to make porn officially permissible content was bound to be controversial. <\/p>\n NUDES IN BIO<\/p>\n \u2014 dream (@dreamwastaken) May 20, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n When approached by\u00a0Fortune<\/em>\u00a0for a comment, X replied with the automated statement \u201cbusy now, please check back later\u201d. Benarroch did not respond on X to a request for statement.<\/p>\n Musk\u2019s social media platform has labored under heavy losses ever since he added $1 billion in annual interest to its cost base in order to fund his $44 billion acquisition in late October 2022.\u00a0<\/p>\n While X remains a privately-owned company, its problems potentially threaten to spill over to Tesla, as the EV manufacturer is the main source of wealth for Musk and share sales have been used to finance his Twitter endeavor. Tesla stock is down 50% since Musk\u2019s interest in the social media platform became public in April 2022.<\/p>\n In September, Yaccarino suggested X could actually turn a profit in early 2024.<\/a> But an investigation by a non-profit showing evidence that X had\u00a0placed ads next to pro-Nazi posts<\/a>\u00a0subsequently triggered an exodus of advertisers from companies like Disney<\/a> and ignited fresh worries over a possible financial collapse. Instead of diplomacy, Musk opted to go on the attack, threatening<\/a> to name and shame advertisers in the event of X\u2019s bankruptcy.\u00a0<\/p>\n Musk appears unsatisfied with the pace of improvement at X and recently\u00a0tapped<\/a>\u00a0his Boring Company CEO Steve Davis to have a closer look at its cost base in what Yaccarino confidantes told the FT was a direct challenge to her authority.<\/p>\n Yaccarino herself has faced constant speculation she is little more than a\u00a0puppet CEO<\/a>\u00a0installed to\u00a0take the heat off <\/a>Musk\u2019s management of the company and, when necessary,\u00a0fall on any grenades<\/a>\u00a0for the centibillionaire.\u00a0<\/p>\n When she opened up last week about the difficulties overcoming her\u00a0imposter syndrome<\/a>\u2014a feeling that one hasn\u2019t truly earned their status and position\u2014she was asked what was the best message she had ever received from him.\u00a0<\/p>\n Welcome to the flock, @benarroch_joe<\/a>! From one bird to the next. <\/p>\n Let\u2019s get to work @Twitter<\/a>! #timetofly<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Linda Yaccarino (@lindayaX) June 4, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Rather than cite an example of how he builds her up or encourages her to achieve her best, the first thing that came to Yaccarino\u2019s mind was the day Musk announced\u00a0her hire<\/a>\u2014not anything that happened in the 13 months since.<\/p>\n Yaccarino\u2019s room to maneuver already was limited amid the ongoing losses and now she has to bear the blame for having personally vouched for Benarroch, her former aide, in the first place.\u00a0<\/p>\n Unless Yaccarino can better tap into her extensive rolodex to lure back her contacts in the ad industry, Benarroch may not be the only former NBCUniversal executive to find themselves updating their LinkedIn profile.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
Direct threat to Yaccarino\u2019s authority<\/h2>\n
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