And the winner for most on the nose book title of the year goes to…
Sarah Wynn-Williams’ recounting of her time at Facebook (now Meta) is at times funny, horrific, and plain sad. From true Facebook believer, who pitched her dream role, international governmental policy, to at first disappointed employee trying to change things from inside, to full blown dissenter, and (spoiler) ultimately fired whistleblower.
There are few familiar names that come of well in Ms. Wynn-Williams’ telling. Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg come off particularly badly with their clueless and tone-deaf behavior being only the start. It is also telling that there are currently no slander or defamation suits against the author for the memoir, only an order enforcing her NDA (Non-Disclosure Agreement) signed as part of her separation agreement.
Ignoring for a moment the wider societal issues with Facebook that are the main thrust of the book, what the author shows off is the often-dark side of the Silicon Valley myth. That while the pay and benefits may be great, the workload is deliberately punishing as an instrument of control. That anything outside of work is seen as an almost disloyal distraction. What is often portrayed as quirky, is often just mean behavior and nepotism with a significant dose of classism and well – carelessness. That it is far better to ask for forgiveness than to ask for permission, regardless of the potential consequences.
Where this volume really scores is in exposing just how deliberately powerful and impactful Facebook can be when it comes to manipulation. That Meta just does not care about the consequences of this or the impact around the world. It cares about getting new users to generate more business and that’s it. Whether it be vulnerable teenagers, peoples struggling to wrestle democracy from authoritarian regimes, or actively embedding staff with political campaigns to spread false information at home, Facebook seems to play the worst role possible. It is illuminating how the lessons learned from real world events are the worst lessons possible and that these are the last people we should be letting have oversized roles in our society.
The public face and social engagement of the leaders of Meta is all front. Sheryl Sandberg’s “Lean In” book and subsequent foundation are shown to be shams by people who not only do not practice what they preach, but also would be horrified by the mere temerity of the idea of being called out on this.
This is a book that exposes titans of Silicon Valley as not only shallow and immoral, but without any ethical framework or even basic decency. The very worst of the “let them eat cake mentality.”
While the book has a little of the “this was awful, but I did not say anything” that is often found in whistleblower accounts, this is kept to a bare minimum and while Ms. Wynn-Williams comes out of the account pretty well, she freely admits to her own naivety, and her wide eyed idealism.
This is a book that will make you think long and hard about your own Facebook usage but it really is about just how out of touch tech leaders can be, even with basic HR norms, and just how much the people who unleash technological forces just do not care about anything other than their own interests.
Careless in other words.
Mike Falconer 