Yaccarino

Linda Yaccarino
Born	Template:Birth year and age
Birthplace	United States
Nationality	American
Occupation	Business executive
Title	Chief Executive Officer
Employer	eMed Population Health
Known for	CEO of X Corp. (formerly Twitter), Chairman of Global Advertising and Partnerships at NBCUniversal

Linda Yaccarino (born 1963) is an American media and business executive who served as the chief executive officer (CEO) of X Corp., the social media company formerly known as Twitter, from 2023 to 2025. Appointed by Elon Musk following his acquisition of the platform, Yaccarino became one of the most prominent figures in the technology and media industries during a period of significant transformation and controversy at the company. Prior to her tenure at X, she spent more than a decade at NBCUniversal, where she rose to the position of Chairman of Global Advertising and Partnerships, overseeing the company's advertising revenue operations. After stepping down from X in July 2025, Yaccarino was named CEO of eMed Population Health, a digital health company focused on population health management. Her career has spanned decades of leadership in advertising, media, and technology, positioning her at the intersection of traditional media and digital platforms during a period of rapid industry change.

Career

NBCUniversal

Before joining X Corp., Linda Yaccarino built a lengthy career in the media and advertising industry. She held the position of Chairman of Global Advertising and Partnerships at NBCUniversal, one of the largest media conglomerates in the world. In this role, she was responsible for overseeing the company's advertising sales and revenue strategy across its portfolio of television networks, streaming platforms, and digital properties. Her work at NBCUniversal established her as a prominent figure in the advertising industry, with extensive relationships across major brand advertisers and media agencies.

Yaccarino's background in advertising and her deep connections within the industry were widely cited as a principal reason for her appointment to lead X Corp., as the platform faced a significant exodus of advertisers following Elon Musk's acquisition and the subsequent changes he implemented at the company.

CEO of X Corp.

In 2023, Elon Musk appointed Linda Yaccarino as CEO of X Corp., the company that owns the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. Musk had completed his acquisition of Twitter in October 2022 and subsequently rebranded the platform as "X" as part of a broader vision to transform the service into an "everything app." Yaccarino's appointment was seen as an effort to stabilize the company's relationship with advertisers, many of whom had paused or reduced spending on the platform following Musk's takeover.

As CEO, Yaccarino served as the public-facing leader of X, while Musk retained ownership and significant influence over the company's direction, including its technology and product development. Her role required navigating the complex dynamics of leading a company where the owner maintained an active and often controversial public presence on the very platform she managed.

During her tenure, Yaccarino worked to attract advertisers back to the platform and to forge new content and partnership deals. One such initiative was an exclusive partnership with Paris Hilton and her media company, 11:11, which Yaccarino announced as part of efforts to bring high-profile content creators and brands to the platform. Such partnerships were part of a broader strategy to diversify X's revenue streams and enhance its appeal to both users and advertisers.

However, Yaccarino's time at X was also marked by persistent challenges. The platform continued to face criticism and controversy related to content moderation policies, the behavior and statements of Musk on the platform, and technical and product decisions that affected user experience. A significant incident involved the company's AI chatbot, Grok, which generated posts containing Nazi imagery, creating a public relations crisis that further complicated Yaccarino's efforts to reassure advertisers and the public about the platform's safety and integrity.

Throughout her tenure, Yaccarino was frequently placed in the position of defending Musk's decisions and public statements to advertisers and the broader media industry. This dynamic attracted scrutiny, with commentators questioning the extent of her actual authority within the company and whether her role was primarily that of a mediator between Musk and the advertising community rather than a traditional CEO with full operational control.

Departure from X

In July 2025, after approximately two years as CEO, Linda Yaccarino announced that she was stepping down from her position at X Corp. Her departure prompted widespread analysis and commentary in the media regarding the reasons behind her decision and the state of the company she was leaving behind.

Reporting and opinion pieces at the time of her departure explored a range of factors that may have contributed to her decision to leave. These included the ongoing challenge of placating advertisers who remained wary of the platform's content environment, the burden of publicly defending Musk's actions and statements, and specific incidents such as the Grok AI Nazi posts controversy. A Poynter opinion piece published shortly after her departure asked, "Placating advertisers, defending Elon Musk, dealing with Grok's Nazi posts — what was the final straw?"

The Guardian reported that Yaccarino announced she was leaving the company, describing it as a departure after two years as chief executive officer. AOL reported the news similarly, noting that she was "stepping down as CEO of X after two years leading Elon Musk's social media company."

Yaccarino's departure marked the end of a high-profile chapter in her career and left open questions about the future leadership and advertiser relations strategy at X Corp.

eMed Population Health

Shortly after leaving X, Yaccarino was named as the new Chief Executive Officer of eMed Population Health, a digital health company. The appointment was announced on August 5, 2025, through a press release and was covered by multiple major news outlets.

eMed Population Health describes itself as a company operating in the population health management space. The company's press release stated that Yaccarino's appointment was intended to accelerate the company's growth as a leader in population health management. CNBC reported on the appointment, noting that Yaccarino had "stepped down as CEO of Elon Musk's social" media company before taking the new role.

CNN characterized the move as Yaccarino taking "a new leadership gig in the weight loss space," suggesting that eMed's operations include services related to weight management as part of its broader population health portfolio.

The transition from leading one of the world's most prominent social media platforms to heading a digital health company represented a significant shift in Yaccarino's career trajectory, moving her from the technology and media sector into the healthcare industry.

Public Profile and Media Coverage

Linda Yaccarino's public profile increased substantially upon her appointment as CEO of X Corp. in 2023. Prior to that role, she was a prominent but largely industry-facing figure in the advertising and media world through her work at NBCUniversal. Her move to X placed her at the center of one of the most closely watched corporate stories in the technology sector.

During her time at X, Yaccarino appeared at industry events and made public statements regarding the platform's strategy, advertiser relations, and content partnerships. Her announcement of the Paris Hilton partnership was one example of her efforts to generate positive media coverage for the platform through high-profile deals.

However, much of the media coverage of Yaccarino during her time at X focused on the tensions inherent in her role. Journalists and commentators frequently examined the relationship between Yaccarino and Musk, the extent of her decision-making power, and the challenges she faced in managing the company's reputation amid ongoing controversies. The Poynter piece published after her departure was emblematic of this coverage, explicitly cataloguing the difficulties she encountered — from advertiser relations to AI-generated content crises — and questioning what ultimately prompted her to leave.

Yaccarino also appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee during her tenure at X, as referenced in a photo caption in the Poynter article, indicating that her role brought her into contact with government and regulatory bodies examining issues related to social media platforms.

Her departure from X and rapid appointment at eMed Population Health generated a second wave of significant media attention, with outlets including CNBC, CNN, and others covering the transition and analyzing what it signified for both her career and the companies involved.

Legacy

Linda Yaccarino's tenure as CEO of X Corp. is likely to be studied as a case in corporate leadership under unusual and highly public constraints. Her appointment represented an attempt to bring traditional media industry credibility and advertising expertise to a technology platform undergoing radical transformation under its new owner. The degree to which she was able to exercise independent leadership, and the challenges posed by serving as CEO of a company where the owner maintained such a prominent and active role, became central questions during her time in the position.

Her career trajectory — from a senior leadership role at one of the world's largest media companies, to the CEO position at one of the most controversial technology companies, and then to a CEO role in the digital health sector — reflects the increasing fluidity of executive careers across industry boundaries in the modern business landscape.

The circumstances of her departure from X, including the specific controversies and challenges cited in media reporting, contributed to broader discussions about the role of CEOs at founder- or owner-led technology companies, the relationship between platform governance and advertiser confidence, and the personal toll of leading organizations at the center of intense public scrutiny.