alt.hn

8/20/2026 at 3:31:56 AM

Zuckerberg encouraged growth over child safety, ex-Meta executive testifies

 https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/former-meta-engineer-resumes-testimony-landmark-trial-over-social-medias-harm-2026-08-19/

by thm

8/20/2026 at 6:32:06 AM

It's a long time since I used Facebook on a regular basis, but Instagram is a weak spot where I have had to set the phone to give me just 10 minutes per day, then shut it off. Now I can go days without opening the app, and I usually manage to exit before the time is up.

I can highly recommend the book "Carless People" by Sarah Wynn-Williams if you want to know just how bad it really is/was. Just remember that this is just one side of the story. Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg (no longer at Meta) probably have a different story.

by torh

8/20/2026 at 5:49:00 PM

> Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg (no longer at Meta) probably have a different story.

Safe to assume anything Zuckberg says in relation to his actions being positive are either an outright lie or so inflated by his arrogance, greed and ego that it's completely unreliable information (still a lie)

by jsbisviewtiful

8/21/2026 at 11:12:07 AM

Zuck has his pipes and wires hooked up to a bullshit image management unit. I'm surprised there's not some mini operator inside him punching in FWD 10, LEFT 90, FWD 5.

by burnt-resistor

8/20/2026 at 8:31:47 AM

Careless People? I was wondering what not having cars had to do with anything except maybe for people who have PAs/*As or live in Manhattan. ;B

by burnt-resistor

8/20/2026 at 2:08:49 PM

I finally got around to reading "Careless People" by Sarah Wynn-Williams. Not surprised at all by this headline. I quit Facebook and Instagram several years ago but was motivated to finally quit WhatsApp after reading that book. Can't support this morally-bankrupt company.

by nunez

8/21/2026 at 6:46:52 AM

By the way, the thing that fucking amazes me about that book is not only do you hear things about "Meta is suing her to stop her talking about the book" (fuck that. Break Meta up. Zuckerberg for prison) but the financial penalty for SWW would apparently be 11 million dollars, something like that

(per Cory Doctorow)

by alex1138

8/20/2026 at 6:34:56 AM

Nothing matters when money is on the line.

by sidcool

8/20/2026 at 7:56:57 AM

I only use facebook in like once a month and have 50 friends there from school time. But every-time I log-in, the facebook feed recommends me the most outrageous and triggering posts from total strangers, I don't follow them or my friends don't follow them either.

But facebook is like, you know what, I think you should read this scummy post.

Absolute trash place.

by tonis2

8/20/2026 at 10:29:53 AM

Yeah, they transitioned from a social network to a engagement black hole a while ago. There is a "Feeds" page buried in there somewhere but it's far from default.

Twitter might be full of politically dubious [1] and worse-than-Temu/Wish/etc sponsored posts, but at least it can still default to the "You follow" screen.

It really is a shame. Past the obvious privacy issues, having somewhere you could engage with your people online was genuinely nice. I miss early Facebook.

by oliwarner

8/20/2026 at 9:51:27 AM

This is the reason I quit the habit of scrolling through facebook and keep it logged off with no password autofill to add traction. And I know I'm not the only one.

Could it be an algorithm optimizing some badly designed metrics, like "the engagement of active users"? Where making an user inactive also makes the line go up.

On the other hand my mother claims she doesn't get any ragebait.

by neuroticnews25

8/20/2026 at 8:32:06 AM

That is my experience too. I am constantly being recommended ragebait, which is designed to take me into some form of extremism or another. The one small mercy is that most of it is so unsubtle I see it for what it is.

The other stuff it recommends from strangers tends to be moronic, or tries to be emotionally manipulative in some way.

Complete brainrot.

by nephihaha

8/20/2026 at 11:42:43 AM

How is this news? We knew that already, are we supposed to be shocked and horrified?

by cloudie78

8/20/2026 at 12:30:57 PM

Shocked, horrified and apparently binge-watching the trial because it's a "blockbuster": https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49355825

This is economist.com but I've seen local news outlet going with similar headline, portraying the trial as a "must-see" show.

by pndy

8/20/2026 at 1:19:11 PM

At some point Zuckerberg should spend some time in a jail cell. Fines aren't moving the needle.

by josefritzishere

8/20/2026 at 9:18:11 AM

What? But that's impossible! Who would have thought?

by cretinoid

8/20/2026 at 8:39:07 AM

Stanford used to have a "persuasion technology" ("Facebook") class for deliberately maximizing trustworthiness and manipulating users. Interaction and style design are like nonverbal behavior: it's never "apolitical" or "unbiased", unavoidably omnipresent, and has real-world consequences, especially at scale.

https://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/08/technology/08class.html

( https://archive.is/WXgXt )

by burnt-resistor

8/20/2026 at 8:47:21 PM

1787086800 | Meta whistleblower accuses Zuckerberg of misleading public on child safety | https://www.gulf-times.com/article/731431/international/usla...

1787132246 | Meta Under Fire After Whistleblower Claims 100 Times More Teens Saw Graphic Content Than Company Reported | https://www.inkl.com/news/meta-under-fire-after-whistleblowe...

1787158963 | Meta whistleblower accuses Zuckerberg of misleading public on child safety | https://www.thenews.com.pk/latest/1412833-meta-whistleblower...

1787163075 | Whistleblower tells US court Meta knew its platforms could harm children | https://www.trtworld.com/article/45c9a71b2088

1787172180 | Meta's first witness told a jury the problem was Mark Zuckerberg's culture | https://nypost.com/2026/08/19/business/mark-zuckerbergs-meta...

1787194534 | Meta whistleblower says Zuckerberg lied on child safety | https://www.business-standard.com/amp/technology/tech-news/i...

1787198111 | 'You cannot trust Mark Zuckerberg with kids': Ex-Meta employee says CEO put growth before child safety | https://www.storyboard18.com/digital/you-cannot-trust-mark-z...

1787212391 | Meta's first witness told a jury the problem was Mark Zuckerberg's culture | https://thenextweb.com/news/meta-trial-bejar-testimony-oakla...

1787244420 | Whistleblower says Meta 'knowingly ignored' harm to children on its platforms: report | https://bdnews24.com/tech/ad78e5b3fcfe

by 1vuio0pswjnm7

8/20/2026 at 7:40:53 AM

They grow on people misery, fuck em.

by trolleski

8/20/2026 at 6:40:05 AM

My hot take is Zuckerberg should be trialed for crimes against humanity.

by cromka