Thread by @jason_kint, ok, I have a lot to say about this but 1st a [...]

ok, I have a lot to say about this but 1st a point on journalism in a time of weaponized social media. I think this WSJ report may be most important read on tech platforms this year. Love NYT 's tech columnist sharing it. Important that newsrooms share each other's good work. https://twitter.com/kevinroose/status/1265322582473011200

https://twitter.com/kevinroose/status/1265322582473011200

Networks of bad actors, less trusted outlets share each other's work on social media. It's super important that good actors, trusted outlets share each other's work to get at facts rather than only compete across social media. I even wonder if @mikiebarb may consider covering it.

Now on to the report on Facebook. “People don’t trust us,” said a presentation created in the summer of 2018.
I've said this directly to Facebook only when they blame others for their own problems. Trust is built off of prior behavior and reliability. https://www.wsj.com/articles/facebook-knows-it-encourages-division-top-executives-nixed-solutions-11590507499

Facebook Knows It Encourages Division. Top Executives Nixed Solutions.

The social-media giant internally studied how it polarizes users and how it might address the resulting harms, then largely shelved the research.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/facebook-knows-it-encourages-division-top-executives-nixed-solutions-11590507499

This deserves attention for a platform with little independent governance.

"Under Facebook’s engagement-based metrics, a user who likes, shares or comments on 1,500 pieces of content has more influence on the platform and its algorithms than one who interacts w/ just 15 posts."

This is a core problem... "Every significant new integrity-ranking initiative had to seek the approval of not just engineering managers but also representatives of the public policy, legal, marketing and public-relations departments."

leadership failure and where was Sandberg??? -> "Mr. Zuckerberg also signaled he was losing interest in the effort to recalibrate the platform in the name of social good, they said, asking that they not bring him something like that again."

"He said he left Facebook because of his frustration with company executives and their narrow focus on how integrity changes would affect American politics."

... a cold, hard fact:
-Facebook covered-up its crisises
-Joel Kaplan assisted Facebook CEO on testimony
-WSJ reporting implies Kaplan (and board member, Thiel) have outsized influence (if not veto power)
-Kaplan is a political operative in DC
There's your fault line, democracy.

Don’t lose site of WSJ reports on who has CEO’s ear, governance of company, resignation of key board members and senior executives who disagreed with critically important decisions of leadership and failure of agencies to get depositions and answers. https://www.wsj.com/articles/facebook-knows-it-encourages-division-top-executives-nixed-solutions-11590507499

Facebook Knows It Encourages Division. Top Executives Nixed Solutions.

The social-media giant internally studied how it polarizes users and how it might address the resulting harms, then largely shelved the research.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/facebook-knows-it-encourages-division-top-executives-nixed-solutions-11590507499

Good thread from one of the two reporters responsible for this