Careless people . Has anyone read it?

[woahismebutwhy]

Just finished this and am so shocked by the whole culture of Facebook. I wonder is it all true? Has anyone else read it and if so what did you think?
I've deleted Facebook but think that ship has sailed.

Yes I read it and to anyone who works even adjacent to this industry it’s all totally unsurprising, unfortunately. From the reputation of the individuals to the extreme capitalism (focus on money/growth above lives)

I think the extent of their reach influence and power didn't really seem clear to me until reading this . Ultimately very depressing

It’s extremely depressing! And one of the reasons I haven’t had social media - mumsnet aside - since around 2013. This is not an ethical company, and we entrust it with so much of our data, let it communicate what news we even see (whether that’s algorithms or a conscious ‘bias’ by the company). It only cares about growth.

On the funny side, reading Lean In at the same time as knowing the author’s reputation was interesting and an immediate flag that the book is total crap/ineffective.

Yes, it was shocking.

Why do you think it might be untrue?

I finished it yesterday. I worked in IT for 30 years and I don’t think anything in there surprised me, except SS being a sexual predator.

Well…I was very interested in reading this book until I read a review in The Guardian. It focused on the author being asked by her company not to have children in the background during Zoom meetings, and then having a negative reaction to complaining loudly at work about nanny problems. I’m sorry but if this happened at my work I’d be on the company’s side (and I’m a working mother of two).

So you didn’t find the author’s claims or information about Facebook policies credible? I did.

If that’s the worst they could think of to seek to discredit her, it’s not much!

Maybe still read it. I haven't seen the Guardian review but I'll try to find it.The childcare stuff is not the dominant theme of the book.
The account of her ill health postnatally plus the need to keep a job to access health care are pretty grim. But that isn't the overriding concern.
I think for me the most horrifying themes were around the drive by senior management to make money and grab more power at the absolute detriment of whole populations.
My whole working life has been in a female dominated environment in the public sector so I realise how naive I've been.

Agree with you, OP. For me the China and Myanmar stuff and Mark Z’s presidential ambitions were the worst.

I found the Guardian review really odd, as I read it after I’d read the book.

How the company works with China and how it fits in with the US’s relationship with the country, how they handle Myanmar, the cover ups of sexual harassment … All these things are much bigger focuses of the book and it was very strange the Guardian review picked up on comparatively minor parts of the book.

Maybe the reviewer knows SS or MZ 🙈

Guardian has problems with its funding model and uses a Facebook app to get its content out. Probably not coincidental..

I am listening to the audiobook now. I can’t imagine that the author made things up knowing the power of FB - of course there is her POV, their POV and the truth but I would put money on the author being closer to the truth which is ultimately very depressing. I hope it is impactful because to whistleblow FB is a bold move. Good on her. They really are a bunch of c**ts

I’m listening to it now. Some of the details are jaw dropping.

In the press this week (BBC online) are parents of deceased teen DC protesting at Meta (Facebook), for example for not sharing data of the deceased DC that could have shed light on what happened.

The public statements from the company are similar to those quoted in the book.

Still going on, priorities, though not policies and practices clearly still as described in the book.