Facebook is facing increasing pressure after a young person accused him of knowingly allowing hate speech and illegal activities.
The allegations by the person, who spoke to the Washington Post, were allegedly included in a complaint to the Securities and Exchange Commission, the U.S. agency that deals with regulations to protect investors in the company. In the complaint, the former employee recounted how Facebook officials often refused to enforce security rules for fear of angering Donald Trump and his allies or jeopardizing the company’s huge growth.
The allegations echo those of Frances Haugen, a former Facebook product manager, who has said the company consistently prioritizes profit over public safety. Haugen's recent testimony before the US Congress and his upcoming testimony before the UK Parliament has caused a major crisis for the social network, which is said to be preparing plans for a renaming.
New documents show that Facebook employees have repeatedly expressed concerns before and after the election, when Donald Trump tried to falsely overthrow Joe Biden's victory. According to the New York Times, a company data scientist told colleagues a week after the election that 10% of all U.S. views on political content were for posts that falsely claimed the vote was fraudulent. But as workers highlighted these issues and urged the company to act, the company failed or had trouble addressing the problems, the Times reported.
Internal documents also show that Facebook researchers have found that the platform's recommendation tools constantly pushed users towards extremist groups, NBC News reports.
"The time has come for Congress and the Biden administration to investigate Facebook's business model, which benefits from the spread of hatred and more extreme misinformation," said Jessica J González, executive director of the civil rights organization Free Press Action. "It's time for immediate action to hold the company responsible for the extensive damage it has done to our democracy."
