Hey there --

This week The Wall Street Journal released an explosive series of articles [[link removed]] detailing how little Facebook cares about its users. For those of you who may not have a Wall Street Journal subscription, we wanted to fill you in on the highlights.

The bottom line: Zuckerberg has known for years that the platform is failing its users:

** Zuckerberg knew that Facebook’s XCheck system allows 5.8 million “VIP” users including politicians, journalists, and influencers to skirt content moderation rules, enabling them to post extremist content and misinformation.

** Zuckerberg knew that Instagram (owned by Facebook) contributes to significant depression and body image issues among teenagers, according to Facebook’s own internal research.

** Zuckerberg knew that Facebook’s algorithm fuels hate and political polarization online. In 2018, Facebook changed their algorithm to increase meaningful interactions of friends and family, but it only propelled misinformation and extremism.

** Zuckerberg knew that Facebook’s tools are used by human traffickers in the global south. When Facebook employees flagged this for management, the company’s response was “inadequate or nothing at all.”

** Zuckerberg knew that even authoritative sources on Facebook like the CDC and WHO are a “cesspools of anti-vaccine comments.” Still Zuckerberg has repeatedly downplayed anti-vaccine misinformation on his platform.

Zuckerberg knew about these failures, but time and time again, he has failed—or even worse—chosen not to address the problem at hand if it means compromising his profits.

We’re going to keep fighting and doing everything we can in the coming weeks to hold Facebook’s feet to the fire. We’ve got some exciting work coming together to fight for vital antitrust legislation and to elevate those most affected by Big Tech’s societal harms.

Chip in here if you want to help support our work:
[link removed]

Every contribution helps us expand the operational and paid budgets for these upcoming campaigns. We appreciate all the support we can get to stand up to Big Tech.

For now, I hope everyone can enjoy the weekend. We’ve got a lot of work ahead next week.

More soon,
Nicole

Co-founder & Executive Director
Accountable Tech



----

This email was sent to [email protected].

To unsubscribe, go to: unsubscribe: [link removed]
Accountable Tech
712 H Street NE, Suite 1141
Washington, DC 20002
United States