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1/Some reflections ahead of 1/6 anniversary: We still haven't held those responsible to account; not Trump, his advisors, certain media personalities nor Facebook. This
though's mostly about FB, from my observations working there+all we've learned since. Accountability matters.
2/ I left Facebook in 2018 & kept trying to warn about business decisions that were harming democracy. I was smeared & often painted as an alarmist, including when I warned of potential post-election violence if they didn’t change. See this clip from my @TEDTalks written in 2019:pic.twitter.com/2QTOQYAuFL
3/At Facebook, employees were told I was a liar, I never had the title I claimed & I was just disgruntled & self-promoting. Many bought it. So did some journalists & outside “thought leaders”, erasing my 19-yr respected career & damaging my future prospects. So, forgive me if I…
4/…sound self-indulgent, but I just want to emphasize, again, the warnings have been there for years. This didn't start in 2020. The recent whistleblower leaks prove it: FB helped fuel the spread of election lies, QAnon growth + the 1/6 insurrection. And FB leadership knew it.
5/Now we have receipts. Read @JeffHorwitz @RMac18 @sheeraf @donie @daveyalba @lizzadwoskin @Cat_Zakrzewski @billyperrigo +others. This by @BrandyZadrozny on how FB pushes people towards conspiracy theories & hate groups, which many have warned for YEARS. https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/facebook-knew-radicalized-users-rcna3581 …pic.twitter.com/nLyDJ1KYvd
6/I invite you to (re)watch my full @TEDTalks written in 2019 about the harms of frictionless vitality, how FB helps radicalize us, how leadership prioritizes power & growth over fixing this, and what we can do about it. The leaks prove FB knew all of this.https://www.ted.com/talks/yael_eisenstat_dear_facebook_this_is_how_you_re_breaking_democracy …
7/ And from @TTP_updates's new report: "FB played a key role in radicalizing people who took part in the Jan. 6 insurrection...was a prime tool for organizing the rally and spreading the conspiracy theories and militant extremism that drove the rioters."https://www.techtransparencyproject.org/articles/year-after-capitol-riot-facebook-remains-extremist-breeding-ground …
8/Or yesterday's piece by @CraigSilverman @jeffykao +others, which "provides the clearest evidence yet that the social media giant played a critical role in spreading lies that fomented the violence of Jan. 6." FB leaders ignored the warnings for too long.https://www.propublica.org/article/facebook-hosted-surge-of-misinformation-and-insurrection-threats-in-months-leading-up-to-jan-6-attack-records-show …
9/So what now? It’s not about a false binary of whether FB does more good or harm or about blaming FB for all of society’s woes. It’s about protecting the vulnerable from harmful, manipulative, predatory practices. There’s not 1 magic, easy fix. But the status quo can't continue.
10/ It’s only a watershed moment if we do something about it. It's on us to do the work, to push for & create the change we need for a healthy, safe & inclusive democracy. We also must start centering those who've done the work for years, many of whom don’t shout on Twitter...
11/…or make headline news; who’ve taken risks to expose corruption, anti-democratic practices, civil rights violations, whether from politicians, business leaders, media personalities or others. Fighting for accountability matters. I’ve learned from so many (mostly Cassandras).
12/ It's so easy to feel overwhelmed, to believe that none of it's making a difference. Having worked on ntl security & democracy threats around the globe for 20 years, I still believe it's worth fighting for. As to my hopes for 2022, a separate
END.https://twitter.com/YaelEisenstat/status/1478045234856665088?s=20 …
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