The CEO of Facebook has denied allegations that the company prioritizes profit over the safety of its users.
Mark Zuckerberg was responding to Allegations of Francis Hogan That Facebook, if left on its own, would «continue to make choices that are contrary to the common good – our common interest».
Ms Haugen – a former product manager at the tech giant – gave clues to US Senate politicians on Tuesday, days after internal company documents were leaked to the Wall Street Journal.
Zuckerberg wrote in a Tuesday night blog that the certification «just doesn’t reflect the company we know,» adding: «We care deeply about issues like safety, wellbeing, and mental health.
«It’s hard to see coverage distorting our work and our motivations.»
Documents leaked by Ms Haugen included an internal study that suggested Instagram generates peer pressure, which leads to mental health and body image problems among young girls, including eating disorders and suicidal thoughts.
In one report, 13.5% of teenage girls said Instagram increased suicidal thoughts, and 17% said it worsened eating disorders.
During her testimony, Ms Haugen accused Facebook of «hiding its research from public scrutiny», meaning it was «unaccountable».
She added, «When we realized Big Tobacco was hiding the damage, that prompted the government to take action. And when we found out that cars were safer with seat belts, the government took action.»
«And when our government learned that opioids were killing lives, the government took action.»
The whistleblower revealed her identity in an interview with CBS’ 60 Minutes, in which she alleged that Facebook prematurely halted preventive measures designed to combat misinformation that contributed to US Capitol attack.
She said the changes to the algorithms contributed to more division, but that Facebook discovered that they helped bring people back, and helped the tech giant sell more digital ads — the largest share of its revenue.
Zuckerberg responded: “We make money from ads, and advertisers are constantly telling us that they don’t want their ads alongside harmful or angry content.
“And I don’t know of any tech company that makes products that make people angry or depressed.
«Ethical, commercial and product incentives are all pointing in the opposite direction.»
Facebook also owns WhatsApp and Instagram
Zuckerberg said many of Ms Haugen’s claims were «meaningless».
He added, «If we want to hide our results, why have we set an industry-leading standard for transparency and reporting on what we do?
“And if social media is responsible for the polarization of society as some claim, why are we seeing polarization increasing in the United States while remaining constant or declining in many countries with the heavy use of social media around the world?
«The crux of these accusations is the idea that we prioritize profit over safety and well-being. This is not true.»
After Ms Haugen’s testimony, some senators personally invited Zuckerberg to testify before the committee, while others accused him of sailing rather than facing his responsibilities.
Her testimony came after Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp He suffered an unprecedented outage For nearly six hours on Monday – 3.5 billion users were left unable to access the services.