A Tale of Two Leaders
This is my contribution to the (ongoing) Great WordPress Drama of 2024. Here are explainers from Ivan Mehta in TechCrunch and Emma Roth in The Verge to get caught up. Adam Jacob is thorough as usual on the trademark angle. Pelle Wessman gets closer to what I see as the heart of the matter:
WordPress has given the impression that they are a community owned project with WordPress Foundation guaranteeing its independence from any one actor.
But now its become apparent that WordPress Foundation is not.
Yes, this episode reveals much about the importance of good governance in Open Source. Along with that, it reveals the importance of good leadership.
Matt Mullenweg Is a Tragic Tyrant
It is difficult for me not to interpret Matt Mullenweg’s behavior during this crisis through the lens of Greek tragedy:
The negative meaning of tyrannos [“tyrant”] is always latent in [Greek] tragedy, even where the word is used objectively and not as a term of abuse. Tyrannos does not simply indicate a powerful individual but implies absolute power, fortune and wealth. This absolute power leads to ruin and tyrannical vice. Tyrannos signifies not a bad or illegitimate ruler, but rather one with the potential to develop such characteristics.
Against that backdrop, consider the hubris:
The bristling offense:
The abbreviation ‘WP’ is not covered by the WordPress trademarks, but please don’t use it in a way that confuses people. For example, many people think WP Engine is ‘WordPress Engine’ and officially associated with WordPress, which it’s not.
The thin skin: “My own mother was confused.”
The shakedown: “a royalty fee equal to 8% of its Gross Revenue.”
And then, the “Automattic Alignment,” the demand of allegiance:
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“I ask everyone in the WordPress community to vote with your wallet.”
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“If you want to experience WordPress, use any other host in the world besides WP Engine.”
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“I want you all to be informed and involved. Not to stay on the sidelines.”
And finally, The Checkbox™. Yes, it’s really there (archive), and you have to check it to login.
WP Engine alleges that Matt “threatened […] to embark on a self-described ‘scorched earth nuclear approach,’” if they didn’t resolve their conflict before his WordCamp keynote. Whether the specific allegation is true, that certainly describes what has transpired since. Matt himself called it “going to war.” His keynote is his “Spiciest WordCamp Talk Ever!” It immediately sent the community reeling and the chaos shows no sign of letting up anytime soon.
Moreover, Matt’s current behavior is in keeping with his past behavior, as Wes Bos pointed out: “Real ones remember the @photomatt and @pearsonified thesis theme spat of 2010.” I’m not a real one so I had to read up on it. Vicious, highly public conflict seems to be part of Matt’s modus operandi, part of his character as a leader.
The essence of tyranny is absolute power, corrupting absolutely. Matt does not share power. The WordPress Foundation is a sham. He is on the tyrant’s path.
Dries Buytaert Is a Gentle Giant
In the heat of the WordPress drama, it’s easy to forget that there’s another GPL PHP CMS powering a good chunk of the other 57% of the Web: Drupal. Its founder, Dries Buytaert, has all the answers to resolve the WordPress crisis. No joke.
Dries’ work with Drupal is a master-class in institution-building for governing the commons. Elinor Ostrom wrote the book on this, which I summarized in an early post. The summary of the summary is that healthy commons exhibit seven attributes:
- Clearly defined boundaries
- Congruence between appropriation and provision rules and local conditions
- Collective-choice arrangements
- Monitoring
- Graduated sanctions
- Conflict-resolution mechanisms
- Minimal recognition of rights to organize
Drupal exhibits all of these, because Dries explicitly grew Drupal according to the best research on governing the commons. He created the Drupal Association as a truly independent, credible non-profit. Dries’ company Acquia is one company among many operating on equal terms. The Drupal community has evolved a complex system of non-monetary accounting for contributions to the Drupal project, with the Association trusted to carry out monitoring and enforcement. Go read Dries’ deep dive from five years ago. It’s awesome.
In short, Dries shares power. This is the key to Drupal’s success, and inspiring testament to Dries’ remarkable character as a leader. What’s more, Dries’ irenic tone is exceedingly refreshing. From his latest:
Although this post was prompted by the controversy between Automattic and WP Engine, it is not about them. I don’t have insight into their respective contributions to WordPress, and I’m not here to judge. I’ve made an effort to keep this post as neutral as possible.
He just comes across as a really good guy, who has done a lot of really great work with Drupal and genuinely wants to see others and Open Source succeed. When he says he considers Matt a good friend, I believe him. If I see hope for WordPress, it’s that peers such as Dries might get through to Matt with constructive feedback leading to personal growth, and a relaxed grip on power in the WordPress community.
Two Paths for WordPress
I think Matt is right that WP Engine is hurting the WordPress community. They are paradigmatic “Takers” in Dries’ model. As we wrestle with the questions of trademarks and licensing and sustainability and funding and governance in Open Source that this situation presents, let’s also not forget about leadership.
For better or worse, organizations and institutions and communities have leaders. For better or worse, leaders put their stamp on the groups they lead, often in subtle and far-reaching ways. All leaders make mistakes. Nobody is perfect (I attest from personal experience ;-). Power can be difficult to share. Personal growth can be deeply … personal.
If Matt does not want to share power in a true Open Source community, he could at least be more honest about it. We invented Fair Source precisely for companies who want to share to an extent while maintaining control over their core software products. Relicensing might be Matt’s most honest option, since a fork already seems likelier every day (smart money says Linux Foundation has been courting WP Engine behind the scenes for weeks now).
If Matt does want WordPress to live up to its potential as a true Open Source community, he should follow Dries’ advice and make the WordPress Foundation truly independent of Automattic, with well-designed governance. It won’t be easy. There’s a lot of mistrust to overcome. He probably needs to offer WP Engine a board seat to convince them to shift from Taker to Maker.
One way or another, letting go of power is the only cure for tyranny. It’s not too late for Matt to embark on a path to deeper growth as a leader. Thoughtfully sharing power would heal and revitalize the WordPress community and be an inspiration to all of us in Open Source.
Thanks to Michael Selvidge for commenting on a draft of this post.