Facebook chooses profit over children's safety, whistleblower says

Frances Haugen, a former product manager for Facebook, testified before a Senate committee investigating online safety for children, revealing the company's practice of choosing profit over actions that would further protect users. Haugen provided the committee with documents that she said "prove that Facebook has repeatedly misled us about what its own research reveals about the safety of children, its role in spreading hateful and polarizing messages, and so much more."

WASHINGTON - Facebook whistleblower, Frances Haugen will speak with the January 6 Select Committee Thursday to discuss the social media platform’s role in the events of the Capitol riot, according to FOX News.

Haugen’s attorney said Wednesday there was still "more to come" regarding her revelations about the company’s purported failure to address the harmful effects of its platforms.

Haugen, a former Facebook product manager, gathered thousands of documents detailing internal research on harm caused by the platform and later delivered damning testimony before a Senate panel. Haugen’s attorney, John Tye, said some of the revelations contained in her trove of documents have yet to surface.

"It’s obviously pretty substantial, and there’s been a lot of elements that haven’t even been reported yet, so there’s more to come," Tye said in an interview with the Washington Post.

FILE - Facebook whistleblower, Frances Haugen appears before the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Subcommittee at the Russell Senate Office Building on Oct. 05, 2021 in Washington, DC.

Haugen’s documents formed the basis of a sweeping Wall Street Journal series called the "Facebook Files," which revealed internal research showing Facebook-owned Instagram had harmful effects on teenage girls. The whistleblower accused Facebook executives of having extensive knowledge of its platforms’ shortcomings but failing to take adequate steps to address them.

Tye said information obtained by Haugen regarding Facebook’s role in the events of the January 6 Capitol riot "deserves more attention." Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., a member of the January 6 Select Committee, has indicated she will be called to testify.

"I’ve already been in touch with one member of the January 6 committee personally," Tye said.

He added that Haugen’s legal team is in contact with regulators in both the U.S. and abroad.

Haugen, who said she joined the company in 2019 because "Facebook has the potential to bring out the best in us," said she didn’t leak internal documents to a newspaper and then come before Congress to destroy the company or call for its breakup, as many consumer advocates and lawmakers of both parties have called for.

"The company’s leadership knows how to make Facebook and Instagram safer but won’t make the necessary changes because they have put their astronomical profits before people," she said.

Facebook has pushed back on Haugen’s testimony, arguing she mispresented the company’s internal research as well as its response to its findings.

Some of the most pointed criticism came from Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg himself, who penned a lengthy post addressing Haugen’s testimony. He argued that Facebook cares deeply about public safety and has worked to address its platforms’ shortcomings.

"At the most basic level, I think most of us just don't recognize the false picture of the company that is being painted," Zuckerberg said. "Many of the claims don't make any sense."

Haugen is a 37-year-old data expert from Iowa with a degree in computer engineering and a master’s degree in business from Harvard. Before being recruited by Facebook, she worked for 15 years at tech companies including Google, Pinterest and Yelp.

The Associated Press and FOX Business contributed to this report.