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? take Takeaways from Zuckerberg's Congressional testimony thus far:
— Ken Yeung (@thekenyeung) October 23, 2019
- Nothing new said by Zuck
- Republicans think Zuck's like Trump and swoon over him
- Dems think he's not caring enough about civil rights and he's evil
- Why is Libra based in Switzerland?
- Around we go...
Rep. Pressley just asked: "Would you leave behind your children's inheritance in Libra?" Zuckerberg says that "I would," claiming the fact that it's backed one-to-one with real currencies will mean it's legitimate.
— Kurt Wagner (@KurtWagner8) October 23, 2019
Maxine Waters tells Zuckerberg he clearly feels like he's above the law and needs to fix all of Facebook's real problems before starting with Libra and creating new ones.
— Sarah Frier (@sarahfrier) October 23, 2019
Water: "Facebook's plans to create a digital currency, Libra, and a digital wallet, Calibra, raise many concerns related to privacy, trading risk, discrimination ... national security, monetary policy and the security of the global financial system"
— Tony Romm (@TonyRomm) October 23, 2019
nbd there
“I get that I’m not the ideal messenger for this ... A lot of people wish it was anyone but Facebook building this” -- Zuckerberg
— Jeff Roberts (@jeffjohnroberts) October 23, 2019
This interaction with @RepGregoryMeeks is another example of how Zuckerberg’s attempts to cloak his company in progressive social values (the civil rights movement, serving the unbanked) falls apart at the slightest scrutiny.
— Julia Carrie Wong (@juliacarriew) October 23, 2019
Zuckerberg says it would be reasonable for regulators to mandate that Libra be majority-backed by US dollars, not foreign currencies pic.twitter.com/KN2ztGaY2G
— Josh Constine (@JoshConstine) October 23, 2019
Rep. Beatty is really making Zuck sweat over civil rights and housing ads at Facebook. Wow.
— Makena Kelly (@kellymakena) October 23, 2019
Zuckerberg also says they did not discuss Facebook’s policies on fact-checking politicians.
— Brian Fung (@b_fung) October 23, 2019
Zuck is clearly uncomfortable revealing this information and tries to protest repeatedly.
Interesting how many congressmen have asked Zuckerberg about when he told his board about X or Y. Basic lack of understanding here about how FB works. Zuckerberg can do whatever he wants. He controls a majority of the voting shares and his board is just for advice.
— She-Ra Frenkel (@sheeraf) October 23, 2019
There is not one Internet and as long as we keep pretending there is then Facebook will be able to launder this idea that it can spread its ideals to every corner of that internet
— Edward Ongweso Jr (@bigblackjacobin) October 23, 2019
Should add: whatever US lawmakers say today, regulators — in US and elsewhere — have already acted. Central bankers, competition authorities & privacy regulators all have said Libra won’t go ahead without major changes.
— Mark Scott (@markscott82) October 23, 2019
In short, today is pure political theater.
also noteworthy that the lines of questioning are far more sophisticated than they were a year ago during senate testimony
— rat king (@MikeIsaac) October 23, 2019
i would assume after being pilloried after "senator, we run ads," congress wanted to be much more prepared this go-round
Mark Zuckerberg admits to @RepMaxineWaters that Facebook does fact check ads, but will not fact check political ads because he thinks it’s important for candidates to “inject their message into the political debate.” pic.twitter.com/uLG0MWnq0j
— Andrew Kimmel (@andrewkimmel) October 23, 2019
This Zuckerberg congressional hearing we're going to figure it all out. This time it's really going down.
— Antonio García Martínez (@antoniogm) October 23, 2019
(Staging political pseudo-events online and flogging them via social media to discuss how online pseudo-events and social media are a political problem is exquisite.)
BIG!
— Makena Kelly (@kellymakena) October 23, 2019
Rep. Bill Huizenga asks what Facebook would do if the Libra Association decided to launch its cryptocurrency project without US regulator approval.
Zuckerberg: "Then I believe [Facebook] would be forced to leave the Association."
While testifying today in DC re: Libra, Mark Zuckerberg was asked if his views on China have evolved. He used to be more optimistic about doing business in China, but doing so now “compromises American companies' ability to promote our values abroad and around the world.”
— Alex Heath (@alexeheath) October 23, 2019
Katie Porter's super power is that she knows what companies are arguing in court, and when she tells CEOs they have to act baffled when it the opposite of what they're saying in their BS, lawyer-combed, PR prepped testimony. https://t.co/Y23efB3xih
— Linette Lopez (@lopezlinette) October 23, 2019
Today's testimony begs the question, if Zuckerberg insists he doesn't control Libra, what combo of Fb & Libra execs would Congress need to testify together to get real answers?
— Josh Constine (@JoshConstine) October 23, 2019
This is true. Congress is getting better at questioning Facebook faster than Facebook is getting better at lobbying Congress. https://t.co/8Usrb9Qyok
— Kevin Roose (@kevinroose) October 23, 2019
"When did you first discuss [Cambridge Analytica] with board member Peter Thiel?"
— Ryan Mac ? (@RMac18) October 23, 2019
Zuckerberg doesn't have a straight answer.
Quite possibly the most meaningless question of the day so far: Rep. Roger Williams asks Zuckerberg: "Mr Zuckerberg, are you a capitalist or a socialist?”
— Brian Fung (@b_fung) October 23, 2019
Zuckerberg, suppressing a laugh: “Congressman, I would definitely consider myself a capitalist."
Good question: Rep. Porter just asked Zuckerberg to commit to spending one hour per day for the next year watching the same content that Facebook's content moderators do. "I'm not sure it would best serve our community..." he started to say before she cut him off.
— Kurt Wagner (@KurtWagner8) October 23, 2019
every lawmaker should be this forceful at coaxing a material answer to the specific question they are asking. https://t.co/QbqrRjb1mO
— Charlie Warzel (@cwarzel) October 23, 2019
Good questions and answers from Congress and Zuck so far. This hearing is shaping up to be better than the last one.
— Alex Kantrowitz (@Kantrowitz) October 23, 2019
Oh good, a question about Facebook censoring conservatives and antivaxxers! I was afraid we might get through an hour of hearing about a *cryptocurrency product* without Congress advancing any antivaxx conspiracies.
— Will Oremus (@WillOremus) October 23, 2019
This hearing is so annoying. It's basically:
— Matt Stoller (@matthewstoller) October 23, 2019
Q: You helped do a genocide. What the fuck.
A: We've learned a lot over the past few years and we've put new systems in place.
to zuckerberg's defense, if they don't let him answer questions, what's the point of this
— drew olanoff (@yoda) October 23, 2019
.@RepAlGreen is incredulous Mark Zuckerberg doesn’t know how many staffers working on Libra are LGBT pic.twitter.com/K6AJXFIZlp
— Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) October 23, 2019
lol mark zuckerberg thinks it shouldn't rest on one company's shoulders to make decisions about speech which.... is correct! he's so close!
— Ashley Feinberg (@ashleyfeinberg) October 23, 2019
.@AOC asks Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg about the company's use of the Daily Caller as a fact checker, despite repeated, documented instances of the Daily Caller publishing the work of white nationalists. pic.twitter.com/3tjeRSf72n
— Oliver Willis (@owillis) October 23, 2019
To not foresee that launching a currency would lead to this type of scrutiny — or to foresee that scrutiny and still think the company can pull it off — is just bad leadership. Like launching a space shuttle in a hurricane.
— Ryan Mac ? (@RMac18) October 23, 2019
the congressional commission to find innovative ways to ruin mark zuckerberg’s day https://t.co/ncNQuY2YoT
— Charlie Warzel (@cwarzel) October 23, 2019
That was my favorite moment of the Zuck hearing. Ed Perlmutter asks if the digital wallet is like a bank. You could say that, Zuck replies, but we're not asking for a banking license.
— David Dayen (@ddayen) October 23, 2019
"That's the problem!" Perlmutter says.
Things I have learned from Congress today:
— Kevin Roose (@kevinroose) October 23, 2019
— Facebook is a multi-trillion-dollar company
— Mark Zookerman is the CEO of Facebook
— Libra's real name is the "Zuck Buck"
Zuckerberg says that "Facebook will not be a part of the launching of Libra" until all US regulators have approved it.
— Makena Kelly (@kellymakena) October 23, 2019
Leaving a lot of room for Libra to launch without Facebook at first tho...
Wow. Rep. Porter cites the rough conditions content moderators must work under. She asks if Zuck would spend "1 hr a day over the next year watching these videos... and only accessing the same benefits available to your workers"
— Tony Romm (@TonyRomm) October 23, 2019
Zuck didn't say anything
"Thank you Mr. Zuckerberg. Your biography is a textbook example of the power of capitalism." — Rep. Williams, with the understatement of the year
— rat king (@MikeIsaac) October 23, 2019
Zuckerberg essentially just announced that Facebook will be launching its news tab later this week. He says he hopes it will support and "fund" "high quality journalism"
— Steve Kopack (@SteveKopack) October 23, 2019
oh my god -- Rep Porter just brings up how everyone online is dogging Zuckerberg's haircut
— rat king (@MikeIsaac) October 23, 2019
this is like cringe watching the office
Rep. Ocasio-Cortez wants to push Zuckerberg, asks if she could create an ad targeted to black communities promoting the wrong election date. Zuckerberg says that there is some fact-checking that goes on but not political ads.
— Ken Yeung (@thekenyeung) October 23, 2019
devastating pic.twitter.com/2JZGvDAFgt
— Ashley Feinberg (@ashleyfeinberg) October 23, 2019
Finally, somebody asks what went on in the Zuckerberg meeting with President Trump.
— Brian Fung (@b_fung) October 23, 2019
Zuckerberg says he doesn’t think they talked about antitrust investigations, then confirms “those subjects didn’t come up” with Trump.
We just got our first “Mr. Zuckerman” of the hearing
— Casey Newton (@CaseyNewton) October 23, 2019
Congressman Riggleman asked Zuck how realistic was the portrayal of "The Social Network". <snickers> Riggleman says we're about to see "The Social Network 2" and wanted to make sure he's in control of his casting.
— Ken Yeung (@thekenyeung) October 23, 2019
These are very tough/good Qs: Rep. Green: of 21 members of Libra Association, how many headed by women, minorities, LGBTQ. Zuckerberg cannot answer
— CeciliaKang (@ceciliakang) October 23, 2019
We’re on to housing discrimination issues. Rep. Lacy Clay asks if Facebook would comply with any future subpoenas or document requests that could shed light on housing advertisers’ behavior. Zuckerberg assents, after a brief pause.
— Brian Fung (@b_fung) October 23, 2019
It remains very problematic that companies that work harder to root out awful content online (and thus have higher reported numbers) are villified as “not doing enough” when their competitors by definition are doing far less. Huge incentive problem.
— Ben Thompson (@benthompson) October 23, 2019
Pay attention to how Zuckerberg attempts Facebook to be synonymous with Internet. Some members, maybe on both sides, will assist. It ring hollow with anyone who knows space even in Valley. Facebook is a closed platform which makes everyone look bad and has eroded trust. Period.
— Jason Kint (@jason_kint) October 23, 2019
Waters now says: Facebook has opened a serious discussion on breakup.
— CeciliaKang (@ceciliakang) October 23, 2019
Let’s go. Zuckerberg before House Financial Services Committee to defend Libra and a whole lots of issues facing Facebook pic.twitter.com/1Hgsouyv5r
— CeciliaKang (@ceciliakang) October 23, 2019
zuckerberg hearing starting and there's an insane amount of photographers and now random aides and other people just walking up and taking cell phone photos of MZ
— rat king (@MikeIsaac) October 23, 2019
Rep. Waters is trying to figure out if they want to let people stay huddled down there in a photo scrum
The idea that FB sees political ads as a way for underrepresented groups being able to spread their messages that don’t make it to voters through media is BS. Majority of political ads are bought by existing political groups/candidates, not grassroots organizations.
— Mark Scott (@markscott82) October 23, 2019
Congress does memes pic.twitter.com/CRajtxT1DA
— Alex Kantrowitz (@Kantrowitz) October 23, 2019
How to use five minutes with Mark Zuckerberg, the Congress playbook:
— Rowland Manthorpe (@rowlsmanthorpe) October 23, 2019
1. Waste two minutes recapping what's just happened
2. Ask a question you could easily Google
3. Interrupt - so tough!
4. Rush him to finish as you're running out of time
5. "Thank you Mr Zuckerman"
Congress is asking good questions of Mark Zuckerberg.
— Teddy Schleifer (@teddyschleifer) October 23, 2019
Every members has their own priorities, of course. Which gives this hearing on the whole a scattershot feel.
But 90% of the Representatives are probing a powerful person in a thoughtful, firm and analytical way.
Oh wow. Rep. Tlaib said that FB allowing false claims in political ads has led to death threats at her office.
— Jason Abbruzzese (@JasonAbbruzzese) October 23, 2019
These FB offenses reminders running on giant screens in the room pic.twitter.com/8WE1QE4QfC
— CeciliaKang (@ceciliakang) October 23, 2019
I was surprised Zuckerberg, who by most accounts is a smart person, not just got fooled into believing cryptocurrencies are a thing, but also went to double down on Libra. https://t.co/AVtYcBu46T
— Can (@can) October 23, 2019
Rep Pressley pushes Zuckerberg on saying he has a product solution for the under-banked. The problem isn’t transaction cost or identity. “You understand the power but I don’t think you understand the pain. There’s underbanking because people are broke.”
— Sarah Frier (@sarahfrier) October 23, 2019
When someone tells you your platform still has hate speech on it. pic.twitter.com/KnONmlXW6W
— Lance Ulanoff (@LanceUlanoff) October 23, 2019
Takeaways from Zuckerberg's testimony:
— Josh Constine (@JoshConstine) October 23, 2019
-Fb will announce its News section this week
-He argued for Libra approval because China's digital Renminbi is coming soon
-Libra partners left because "it's a risky project and there's been a lot of scrutiny."https://t.co/yLKmKTkFyD
“For the richest man in the world to come here & hide behind the poorest people in the world & say that’s who you’re really trying to help. You’re trying to help those for whom the dollar is not a good currency—drug dealers, terrorists”—Rep Sherman (D-CA) https://t.co/jXy4ZXERSg
— acotter (@Avonan) October 23, 2019
Mark Zuckerberg has returned to Capitol Hill to talk about Libra.
— Axios (@axios) October 23, 2019
But, Rep. Maxine Waters lit into Facebook in her opening statement, making clear the hearing would be about all the other charges lawmakers have leveled against the social network, too.https://t.co/yTuaZmVGC1
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is testifying in the House right now about the #Libra project. Here's what at stake: https://t.co/wcveLZz6fX Catch the testimony here https://t.co/KFn0QOS9zR
— Norbert J. Michel (@norbertjmichel) October 23, 2019
It seems that Zuckerberg's lawyers failed to advise him to avoid visibly chuckling as Rep. Waters accuses Facebook of destroying competitors in her opening statement. Not a good look. Hearing in progress. https://t.co/pBRouHsXW5
— Andrea Matwyshyn (@amatwyshyn) October 23, 2019