Influential voices in the WordPress community continue to make proposals on how WordPress.org should evolve from now on, while Matt continues to mock the project’s contributors.
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Program transcript
Hello, I’m Alicia Ireland, and you’re listening to WPpodcast, bringing the weekly news from the WordPress Community.
In this episode, you’ll find the information from December 23th to 29th, 2024.
The main goal of the Plugin Check roadmap for 2025 will be to improve the plugin review process in the WordPress repository, allowing developers to perform self-diagnostics for potential issues before submitting their plugins, or even after submission and for future updates. This includes checking for compliance with repository guidelines and detecting common security issues such as lack of data validation or protective measures. Additionally, the goal is to streamline reviews by integrating more automated checks that reduce common errors and speed up the process.
Another key goal will be to promote best practices in plugin development, with a particular focus on improving security and performance. Phases are planned that expand the capabilities for security and performance analysis, in collaboration with WordPress teams like Performance. The project also encourages integrating Plugin Check into the developers’ workflow to help them detect issues early and ensure their plugins are aligned with best practices and updates for WordPress and Gutenberg.
Joost de Valk, known for his work on Yoast, has proposed a radical shift in WordPress leadership, arguing that the project needs to evolve to be more democratic and less centralized. In his vision, WordPress needs an independent foundation to oversee the project, with a diverse council of industry leaders. This council would be responsible for making key decisions, rather than relying on a single individual, as is currently the case with Matt Mullenweg, whose leadership style is being criticized for his growing control over the project and the lack of space for dissent. He also proposes transferring key assets like WordPress.org and the WordPress brand to the foundation to prevent them from being under the exclusive control of a single entity.
Additionally, he calls for a clearer governance structure with teams responsible for areas like architecture, product, and events to streamline decision-making and encourage collaboration. He also suggests an innovation in the plugin and theme repository system, proposing a federated and independent model that would allow other platforms besides WordPress.org to host and share updates securely. He stresses that this change should not depend on Matt’s approval, as he believes his permission is not necessary for these proposals to move forward.
Reactions from the community have been mixed. While some support the idea of decentralizing power and giving more voices a place in the WordPress ecosystem, others fear that such changes could fragment the community. The proposal for new leadership has sparked a debate on how to balance innovation with cohesion within WordPress. De Valk, for his part, is willing to lead this transition process, but emphasizes that it is not about replacing a centralized leader with another, but about establishing a more inclusive and collaborative model.
Meanwhile, Matt, has sparked controversy again by posting a message on Reddit asking what kind of “drama” he should create in 2025, suggesting ideas like changing WordPress version names to Drake song titles or removing all notices from the dashboard. The post has been met with a large number of negative comments, many urging him to stop creating unnecessary drama and reflect on his behavior, pointing out that such an attitude could harm the productivity and well-being of the community. Some comments were so critical that they suggested Matt should take a break or even step down from leadership due to the growing distrust of his management and recent scandals surrounding WordPress.
Several members expressed their frustration with Mullenweg’s attitude, which seemed to trivialize the serious issues WordPress is facing, such as community fragmentation and criticism of his commercial-focused approach. While some defended his provocative style, the majority called for more seriousness and a more coherent governance structure. The post sparked a wider debate on the direction of the project, with many calling for more community participation and fewer authoritarian decisions, while some suggested that WordPress should be managed by a community foundation rather than a for-profit company, as Joost proposes.
Through his responses, Matt seemed to dismiss the criticisms and showed no understanding of the gravity of the situation, which only increased the perception that his leadership has become disconnected from the real concerns of users and developers. In fact, at the end of his message, he downplayed the current issues in the community, suggesting that recent conflicts would be remembered as trivial in the future. This attitude has left many feeling bewildered and disappointed, hoping the project will return to a more stable leadership that is committed to addressing the real needs of the WordPress community.
And finally, this podcast is distributed under a Creative Commons license as a derivative version of the podcast in Spanish; you can find all the links for more information, and the podcast in other languages, at WPpodcast .org.
Thanks for listening, and until the next episode!
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