Free Speech Is Hard

Shares of Twitter rose 5.1% today -- you might call it a "Barron's Bounce." Our cover story this weekend was a positive take on Twitter and its significant opportunities in the year to come. My colleague Bill Alpert spoke to Twitter founder and CEO Jack Dorsey for the story. Despite being under pressure from the White House -- and his own corporate boardroom -- the CEO sounded calm under pressure. He told Bill: “Some people don’t understand why we haven’t realized our full opportunity. And to that I say, ‘We will.'"

Twitter, has always been at the center of political controversy -- such is the role of a company that long ago promised to enable "any voice to echo around the world instantly and unfiltered." In many parts of the world, the company has become the de facto public square. While the attention hasn't always converted to dollars, multiple Twitter executives told Bill that the company was finally turning things around. Here's an excerpt from the story: 

Twitter executives tell Barron’s that the company is working hard to roll out overdue innovations for users and advertisers. Covid-19 hit Twitter’s advertising revenue harder than its peers, because so many Twitter ad campaigns are driven by sports events, concerts, and product launches. That’s all on hold. But it also makes the stock a play on the economy’s grand reopening. While that plays out, Twitter’s time in the headlines is boosting user growth.

The company had its best day of app downloads ever on Wednesday last week. That same day, Twitter had a record 40 million users in the U.S. 

You can read the full cover story here.