Facebook is no stranger to Capitol Hill – where the US Congress is located.
But October 5 was more special than previous times, because the person being questioned was a former Facebook manager: Frances Haugen.
Haugen is not the first former employee to criticize Facebook’s operations.
Frances Haugen and Mark Zuckerberg.
Exposing a series of truths
Haugen, 37 years old, has a bachelor’s degree in computer science, held the position of Director of a department at Facebook since 2019 before resigning in May.
Before the US Senate Subcommittee, Haugen shared internal documents, as well as explained the technical operations of platforms at Facebook in a polished and simple way.
Both before and during the hearing, former Facebook employees mentioned a series of content that the company hid.
In addition, Haugen also continuously mentioned social network issues in other countries, such as the connection between Facebook activities and violence in Myanmar and Ethiopia, or espionage in China and Iran.
`As long as Facebook continues to operate in the shadows, no one will be held accountable,` Haugen told the WSJ on October 3.
Strong blow to Facebook
According to observers, the new revelations will make Facebook increasingly lose trust with users and investors in the coming time.
`Facebook is one of the worst companies ever founded,` financial expert Michael Lee commented on Fox Business.
According to Mr. Lee, Facebook has become a political tool in many places, but has not suffered any major consequences.
Yael Eisenstat, a former Facebook employee, said Haugen’s revelations were important.
Some US lawmakers also continue to call for changes to Article 230 of the US Communications Standards Act.
‘American hero of the 21st century’
At the hearing, Haugen’s testimony was considered convincing to most members of the subcommittee – who praised her and affirmed that they would try to protect her.
`She is an American hero of the 21st century,` Senator Ed Markey said at the hearing.
According to CNN, Haugen is not like Zuckerberg or other senior executives – who stand up to protect the company’s reputation.
Drawing on years of `algorithmic product management` experience, Haugen offers specific recommendations on how Facebook can change the platform, including eliminating algorithms that rank content based on ratings.
Haugen also repeatedly stated that he is not against Facebook, but is concerned that `this system will create danger if it continues to exist`.
`Facebook is stuck in an endless loop that cannot be escaped. They need to admit they are doing something wrong and need help from others to solve it,` Haugen said.
After the hearing, Subcommittee Chairman on Consumer Protection, Product Safety and Data Security Richard Blumenthal assessed what Haugen said as convincing and credible.
Facebook’s attempt to discredit Haugen
`Today, the Senate Commerce Subcommittee held a hearing with a former manager at Facebook. However, this person has less than 2 years of seniority, and has never attended a decisive meeting with employees.
Stone objected to the content related to children’s rights that Haugen raised.
Monika Bickert, Facebook’s head of global policy management, said in an interview with CNN that there was a `misanalysis` of the data Haugen referenced during the hearing.
Late on October 5, Mark Zuckerberg also posted a 1,316-word `letter` on his personal Facebook account, criticizing what Haugen said before Congress for creating a `false picture of the company`.
In fact, Haugen himself has repeatedly stated that he does not work directly on child safety issues.
Facebook’s attempt to `submerge` Haugen did not impress the US Senate.
