The allegations against the Internet giant Facebook are increasing. The material goes back to the whistleblower Frances Haugen. Now she speaks to MPs in London.
The publication of further internal information is putting increasing pressure on Facebook.
In the coordinated reports of major US media published on Monday, it was said, for example, that Facebook finds it difficult in many countries to combat misinformation and hate speech. While the company is aware of the problems, it only presents successes to the outside world.
The articles are largely based on internal documents downloaded by former colleague Frances Haugen. In London, before a committee of the British Parliament on Monday, she repeated her allegations against Facebook and CEO Mark Zuckerberg of having put profits above the well-being of users.
Haugen appears as a whistleblower and handed over Facebook’s documents to the SEC and the US Congress. Several US media also got access and published series of articles on Monday at the same time. Haugen had already triggered massive criticism of Facebook with the allegation that the group does not care enough about the well-being of teenagers on the Instagram photo platform.
Among other things, the new reports now deal with the fact that, following the US presidential election, Facebook quickly relaxed its anti-misinformation measures, thereby leaving room for Donald Trump and his supporters to make allegations about election fraud. On January 6, supporters of the elected president stormed the US Congress in Washington. According to internal documents, Facebook also has a problem in the USA with young users who access the platform less than before.
A Facebook spokeswoman told the Washington Post that the reports were based on selected documents without any context. The online network again rejected the core accusation that it puts profit above the well-being of the users. “Yes, we are a company and we make profits, but the idea that we are doing this at the expense of the safety and well-being of users misunderstands where our business interests lie,” a spokesman said. The truth is that it has invested $ 13 billion and employs 40,000 people to keep users safe.
In London, Haugen renewed her allegations against her former employer. The algorithm that Facebook uses is “dangerous,” she said on Monday in front of a committee in the British Parliament. Posts with a lot of likes and comments would be displayed prominently, but dangerous content would not be sorted out. Only three percent of hate speech and violence would be detected by the platform. Rather, polarizing content would be “prioritized” and “over-concentrated” by the algorithm. Haugen emphasized that she had no doubt that this would incite violence and that riots like the one on January 6 in front of the Capitol in Washington were repeated.
Haugen criticized the Facebook subsidiary Instagram was “much more dangerous” than other social media platforms. She is deeply concerned about the effects, especially on young people. Instagram is about “social comparisons” and “body”, which is particularly harmful for this age group. Other platforms such as Twitter are also much more transparent. “Because Twitter knows that they are being watched, they behave better,” said Haugen. She had previously met with British Home Secretary Priti Patel. The UK is currently working on a law to make users of Internet platforms such as Facebook more secure.
There were protests against Facebook in front of the Parliament in London. A figure of Facebook boss Zuckerberg was also shown, who was put in his mouth with the statement “I know that we harm children, but I don’t care”.
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