In greater than 3 hours of riveting testimony, a former Facebook worker tore into the now embattled social networking giant, blaming its "metrics" driven culture for hurting children, fueling hate and walking far from ethical considerations because income come first.
Frances Haugen, attesting to the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, accused Facebook of intentionally strolling faraway from fixing its damaged algorithms that fuel a number of the worst consequences of addictive social media apps.
Haugen claims Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg knew approximately inner studies displaying potential negative impacts of Instagram.
"The organisation deliberately hides critical statistics from the public, from the United States authorities and from governments round the sector," she stated.
In response, US lawmakers from throughout the aisle broadly united behind the concept that Facebook's position in society has end up too huge to ignore.
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Like others earlier than her, Haugen is urging stricter authorities oversight of Facebook. In Haugen's telling, Facebook wishes "assist".
"Congressional motion is needed," she stated.
Frances HaugenIn this Sept. Sixteen, 2021, photograph provided by way of CBS, Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen talks with CBS' Scott Pelley on "60 Minutes," in an episode that aired Sunday, Oct. 3. (Robert Fortunato/CBS News/60 Minutes thru AP)
"They may not resolve this crisis without your help," she instructed Congress.
"Facebook's products damage children, stoke division and weaken our democracy," Haugen stated.
"The agency's leadership is aware of a way to make Facebook and Instagram safer however won't make the vital modifications due to the fact they have got put their astronomical earnings earlier than human beings."
Haugen is urging lawmakers to "get away of our previous regulatory frames."
She stated Facebook wants to "trick" the general public into questioning that privateness protections or adjustments to Section 230 alone can be enough. "While essential, those will now not get to the middle of the issue, that is that nobody virtually is aware the detrimental picks made with the aid of Facebook, besides Facebook."
Haugen's maximum compelling arguments got here in reference to how Facebook manipulates algorithms to keep kids hooked to its platform.
"The greenback stops with Mark (Zuckerberg)," Haugen showed, inside the context of cutting-edge Facebook staffers dancing across the information of who takes the large calls at Facebook.
Zuckerberg, she defined, controls more than 50 in line with cent of Facebook's vote casting shares. "There isn't any one currently preserving Mark responsible but himself."
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