Arab Press

بالشعب و للشعب
Friday, Jun 20, 2025

Analysis: Zuckerberg tries to hit hard at the whistleblower, but nothing lands

Analysis: Zuckerberg tries to hit hard at the whistleblower, but nothing lands

Hours after Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen testified before Congress about how the social network poses a danger to children and democracy, Mark Zuckerberg took to the platform he built and posted a 1,300-word screed trying to undermine her.

His main argument was that Haugen was taking Facebook's research on its impact on children -- among the tens of thousands of pages of internal documents and research she took before she left the company -- out of context. In essence, he argued she cannot be trusted to properly portray the company's findings, claiming she painted a "false picture of the company."

But although Facebook employs many talented and diligent researchers, its top executive who cannot be trusted when it comes to sharing the work of those researchers with the public.

In August, Facebook (FB) released a report about the most-viewed posts on its platform in the United States. Guy Rosen, Facebook's vice president of integrity (yes, that's a real job title at Facebook) said at the time the company had become "by far the most transparent platform on the internet."

The report covered Facebook data for the second quarter of this year, and Facebook suggested it painted a rather rosy picture. "Many of the most-viewed pages focused on sharing content about pets, cooking, family," Facebook said.

There was a catch. The research report focused on the second quarter of 2021 -- but what about the first quarter? Had Facebook not gathered data and compiled a report for the first three months of 2021?

It had, but Facebook executives chose not to share it with the public "because of concerns that it would look bad for the company," The New York Times reported. The shelved report showed that the most-viewed link on Facebook in the first quarter of this year was a news article that said a doctor died after receiving the coronavirus vaccine, the Times reported.

That a news article with clear potential to be reshared in a way that undermines the safety of vaccination would be one of the most popular pieces of content on Facebook amid a pandemic didn't fit with the image the company's executives are trying to project: that anti-vaccine sentiment isn't running rampant on the platform and the company isn't contributing to America's vaccine hesitancy problem.

When the research eventually leaked to the Times, Facebook came clean, "We're guilty of cleaning up our house a bit before we invited company," said Andy Stone, a Facebook spokesperson.

The next month, the company was criticized after New York University researchers who were studying misinformation on Facebook said they were booted from the platform. (The company said their decision to deplatform the researchers was related to a separate study on political ads that involved using a browser extension that allowed users to anonymously share the ads they saw on Facebook with the researchers.)

Facebook does regularly publish reports on its enforcement of its rules and how much content it catches that is against them, such as hate speech. Earlier this year the company announced it had brought on EY to audit the research beyond those reports.

Bringing in an auditor could be a welcome move, but when it comes to the company's handling of its engagement reports earlier this year, the very blatant cherry-picking of what research to make public and what to hide raises the question: what else does Facebook know that it's not telling us? And who is really creating a "false picture" of the company and its impact on society?

Facebook whistleblower, Frances Haugen appears before the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Subcommittee.


A low-level employee


Facebook's other attempt to undermine the whistleblower was to portray Haugen as a low-level employee who doesn't know what she is talking about. But that strategy appears to be backfiring, too.

Samidh Chakrabarti was head of "civic engagement" at Facebook. Chakrabarti had regularly been put forward by the company to speak publicly about the good work Facebook was doing, even being part of the press tour of the Facebook "war room" for the 2018 US Midterm elections. (The war room was later widely mocked as a publicity stunt.)

After her testimony Tuesday, Facebook described Haugen as "a former product manager at Facebook who worked for the company for less than two years, had no direct reports, never attended a decision-point meeting with C-level executives."

That prompted Chakrabati to respond on Twitter, "Well I was there for over 6 years, had numerous direct reports, and led many decision meetings with C-level execs, and I find the perspectives shared on the need for algorithmic regulation, research transparency, and independent oversight to be entirely valid for debate."

Unfortunately for Facebook, Haugen is on to something.

Comments

Oh ya 4 year ago
Talking about hitting and zuckersucker do you remember years ago they had weighted punching bags for kids. It was a cheap inflatable bag with a picture printed on it and when you punched it it stood back up. I think I had Howdy Duty printed on mine. Well one with zucks face could be a great selling idea. A punch a elbow or a bitch slap across his smug face would be a good start to lots of peoples day

Newsletter

Related Articles

Arab Press
0:00
0:00
Close
16 Billion Login Credentials Leaked in Unprecedented Cybersecurity Breach
Senate hearing on who was 'really running' Biden White House kicks off
G7 Leaders Fail to Reach Consensus on Key Global Issues
Mass exodus in Tehran as millions try to flee following Trump’s evacuation order
Iranian Military Officers Reportedly Seek Contact with Reza Pahlavi, Signal Intent to Defect
China's Iranian Oil Imports Face Disruption Amid Escalating Middle East Tensions
Trump Demands Iran's Unconditional Surrender Amid Escalating Conflict
Israeli Airstrike Targets Iranian State TV in Central Tehran
President Trump is leaving the G7 summit early and has ordered the National Security Council to the Situation Room
Netanyahu Signals Potential Regime Change in Iran
Analysts Warn Iran May Resort to Unconventional Warfare
Iranian Regime Faces Existential Threat Amid Conflict
Energy Infrastructure Becomes War Zone in Middle East
Iran Conducts Ballistic Missile Launches Amid Heightened Tensions with Israel
Iran Signals Openness to Nuclear Negotiations Amid Ongoing Regional Tensions
Shock Within Iran’s Leadership: Khamenei’s Failed Plan to Launch 1,000 Missiles Against Israel
UK Deploys Jets to Middle East Amid Rising Tensions
Exiled Iranian Prince Reza Pahlavi Urges Overthrow of Khamenei Regime
Wreck of $17 Billion San José Galleon Identified Off Colombia After 300 Years
Iran Launches Extensive Missile Attack on Israel Following Israeli Strikes on Nuclear Sites
Israel Issues Ultimatum to Iran Over Potential Retaliation and Nuclear Facilities
Coinbase CEO Warns Bitcoin Could Supplant US Dollar Amid Mounting National Debt
Trump to Iran: Make a Deal — Sign or Die
Operation "Like a Lion": Israel Strikes Iran in Unprecedented Offensive
Israel Launches 'Operation Rising Lion' Targeting Iranian Nuclear and Military Sites
Israeli Forces Intercept Gaza-Bound Aid Vessel Carrying Greta Thunberg
IMF Warns of Severe Global Trade War Impacts on Emerging Markets
Syria to Reconnect to Global Economy After 14 Years of Isolation
Saudi Arabia Faces Uncertainty Over Succession After Mohammed bin Salman
Israel Confirms Arming Gaza Clan to Counter Hamas Influence
Majority of French Voters View Macron's Presidency as a Failure
U.S. Reduces Military Presence in Syria
Trump Demands Iran End All Uranium Enrichment in Nuclear Talks
Iran Warns Europe Against Politicizing UN Nuclear Report
Businessman Mauled by Lion at Luxury Namibian Lodge
Paris Saint-Germain's Greatest Triumph Is Football’s Lowest Point
OPEC+ Agrees to Increase Oil Output for Third Consecutive Month
Turkey Detains Istanbul Officials Amid Anti-Corruption Crackdown
Meta and Anduril Collaborate on AI-Driven Military Augmented Reality Systems
EU Central Bank Pushes to Replace US Dollar with Euro as World’s Main Currency
European and Arab Ministers Convene in Madrid to Address Gaza Conflict
Head of Gaza Aid Group Resigns Amid Humanitarian Concerns
U.S. Health Secretary Ends Select COVID-19 Vaccine Recommendations
Trump Warns Putin Is 'Playing with Fire' Amid Escalating Ukraine Conflict
India and Pakistan Engage Trump-Linked Lobbyists to Influence U.S. Policy
U.S. Halts New Student Visa Interviews Amid Enhanced Security Measures
Trump Administration Cancels $100 Million in Federal Contracts with Harvard
SpaceX Starship Test Flight Ends in Failure, Mars Mission Timeline Uncertain
King Charles Affirms Canadian Sovereignty Amid U.S. Statehood Pressure
Iranian Revolutionary Guard Founder Warns Against Trusting Regime in Nuclear Talks
×