What are we going to do about Facebook?

Hi there,

“It is only when you break it [that you can] remodel the pieces into your vision of a new society.”1

No, those aren’t the words of a Marvel supervillain. They’re a confession from Cambridge Analytica whistleblower Christopher Wylie to The Guardian.

The news that Cambridge Analytica manipulated the Facebook data of millions of people has exposed how our personal information is being exploited.

And people are asking themselves and leaders in Washington the same question: What are we going to do about Facebook?

First, we need answers. Starting at the top.

Tell Mark Zuckerberg to testify under oath.

Facebook is trying to paper over this crisis with PR spin and vague promises of being “open” to testify, but we’re well beyond that. We need Zuckerberg to provide answers before Congress.

Numerous members of Congress have called on Zuckerberg to come to Washington. Facebook privacy is a complex issue, one we can only begin to untangle as we ask the necessary hard questions.

In recent days the rally cry #DeleteFacebook has become a popular DIY solution, but it ignores the reality that for millions of people, Facebook, Instagram and other big platforms are essential to doing business, connecting with friends and family, and organizing for power.

These platforms have enabled a generation of people of color and others within marginalized communities to transcend systemic bias and barriers — to determine their own destinies.

Depending on Facebook and other platforms shouldn’t mean by definition that you’re subject to surveillance and manipulation. We demand that Facebook protect our privacy.

We deserve answers. Tell Mark Zuckerberg to come clean before Congress.

It’s time for Mark Zuckerberg to show up in Washington with complete transparency and begin a long-overdue conversation on how internet platforms treat privacy and profit from our personal information.

Thanks for all that you do—

Collette, Tim, Craig and the rest of the Free Press team
freepress.net

P.S. Hold Mark Zuckerberg accountable: Urge him to testify under oath in Congress.

1. “The Cambridge Analytica Files: ‘I Made Steve Bannon’s Psychological Warfare Tool’: Meet the Data War Whistleblower,” The Guardian, March 17, 2018: https://act.freepress.net/go/19690?t=8&akid=8713%2E10296224%2EytRyjI

Free Press and the Free Press Action Fund are nonpartisan organizations fighting for your rights to connect and communicate. Learn more at www.freepress.net.

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