• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

College-educated women are snapping up the highest-earning men without college degrees, leaving the rest further behind

2

The millennial generation is split in 2: an older crowd with boomer-style comfort, a younger set going 'back to the early 1900s'

3

An 11-year-old is cleaning his neighbors' trash cans for $10 each—he now has 100K followers as teens face the worst summer job market since 1948

1

College-educated women are snapping up the highest-earning men without college degrees, leaving the rest further behind

2

The millennial generation is split in 2: an older crowd with boomer-style comfort, a younger set going 'back to the early 1900s'

3

An 11-year-old is cleaning his neighbors' trash cans for $10 each—he now has 100K followers as teens face the worst summer job market since 1948
Tech

Twitter: Still a Bit of a Clown Car, But Without the Gold Mine

By
Mathew Ingram
Mathew Ingram
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Mathew Ingram
Mathew Ingram
Down Arrow Button Icon
June 2, 2016, 8:30 AM ET
Vanity Fair New Establishment Summit - Day 2
Twitter Co-Founder and Chairman and Square CEO Jack Dorsey speaks onstage during "From 7 Dwarves to 140 Characters" at the Vanity Fair New Establishment Summit at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts on October 9, 2014 in San Francisco, California. Photograph by Kimberly White — Getty Images for Vanity Fair
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

This essay originally appeared in Data Sheet, Fortune’s daily tech newsletter. Sign up here.

Twitter has been described in many ways: a real-time newswire, a global town square, a tool for networked democracy. But Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg came up with one of the most famous (or infamous) descriptions of all when he told a friend that “Twitter is such a mess, it’s like they drove a clown car into a gold mine and fell in.”

Complimentary descriptions of Twitter tend to be about the service, and what it has been able to accomplish in terms of making the world more connected using only short bursts of 140 characters. Zuckerberg’s comment, however, was all about the company behind the service, and the almost Shakespearean levels of drama that took place inside its executive suite as it was taking over the world.

The quote comes from a book that former New York Times reporter Nick Bilton wrote called Hatching Twitter. In it, he details the byzantine machinations at the company, including a coup that kicked out then-CEO Jack Dorsey (via an uprising led by co-founder and friend Evan Williams) followed by a second coup led by Dick Costolo that kicked Williams out as CEO. Since the book was written, Costolo has been kicked out and replaced by Dorsey.

It can be exhausting just trying to keep all the infighting straight—so imagine what it was like trying to run a company while all that was going on. Perhaps it’s not surprising that Twitter (TWTR) has declined at a runaway pace since it went public in 2013. At its peak, the company had a market value of almost $50 billion. Now it is hovering around the $10 billion mark, and user growth has flatlined.

Although many Twitter fans hoped Dorsey’s return would work some magic on the company—as Bilton describes in a Vanity Fair piece that reads like a sequel to his book—it doesn’t appear to have done so. In fact, the stock has lost almost 60% of its market value since Dorsey first returned as interim CEO in July 2015. Perhaps Twitter isn’t a clown car any more, but it doesn’t seem like much of a gold mine either.

About the Author
By Mathew Ingram
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • TikTok icon
  • YouTube icon

Latest in Tech

The war between competing AI models could end up more like Apple vs. Android than VHS vs. Betamax
AITech
The war between competing AI models could end up more like Apple vs. Android than VHS vs. Betamax
By Jason MaJuly 27, 2026
19 minutes ago
Workers help a traveler at a Trip.com tabling session booth.
Big TechChina
Trip.com struck with $765 million penalty from China over monopoly allegations
By The Associated PressJuly 27, 2026
55 minutes ago
Canadian intern at NATO’s military headquarters arrested on espionage charges
North AmericaNATO
Canadian intern at NATO’s military headquarters arrested on espionage charges
By Sam McNeil and The Associated PressJuly 27, 2026
2 hours ago
econ
AsiaChina
A Chinese chip maker’s shares surged 466% in their first day of trading as AI boom worm turns
By Chan Ho-Him and The Associated PressJuly 27, 2026
4 hours ago
canada
EconomyTariffs
Canada’s awkward tariff summer: Gordie Howe Bridge opens for traffic a week after Michigan and White House officials got uninvited
By The Associated PressJuly 27, 2026
4 hours ago
kimi
AIChina
Meet the American techies who don’t care where ‘good enough’ AI models come from, even China
By Chan Ho-Him, Matt O'Brien and The Associated PressJuly 27, 2026
4 hours ago

Most Popular

College-educated women are snapping up the highest-earning men without college degrees, leaving the rest further behind
Economy
College-educated women are snapping up the highest-earning men without college degrees, leaving the rest further behind
By Mia OsmonbekovJuly 26, 2026
1 day ago
The millennial generation is split in 2: an older crowd with boomer-style comfort, a younger set going 'back to the early 1900s'
Real Estate
The millennial generation is split in 2: an older crowd with boomer-style comfort, a younger set going 'back to the early 1900s'
By Nick LichtenbergJuly 25, 2026
2 days ago
An 11-year-old is cleaning his neighbors' trash cans for $10 each—he now has 100K followers as teens face the worst summer job market since 1948
Success
An 11-year-old is cleaning his neighbors' trash cans for $10 each—he now has 100K followers as teens face the worst summer job market since 1948
By Orianna Rosa RoyleJuly 25, 2026
2 days ago
I've been teaching college students for decades. Most of them can no longer finish a book
Commentary
I've been teaching college students for decades. Most of them can no longer finish a book
By Austin SaratJuly 26, 2026
1 day ago
New York City women are making up to $30,000 per month by renting out their closets to strangers
Retail
New York City women are making up to $30,000 per month by renting out their closets to strangers
By Sarah GlodekJuly 27, 2026
10 hours ago
A Hims cofounder fired his marketing agency for an AI-powered team. Now his 24/7 online vet service is growing 20% a month
Success
A Hims cofounder fired his marketing agency for an AI-powered team. Now his 24/7 online vet service is growing 20% a month
By Sydney LakeJuly 25, 2026
2 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.