“We connect people. Period. That’s why all the work we do in growth is justified," an executive wrote in 2016.
A top Facebook executive wrote an internal memo in 2016 that defended the company’s growth as necessary and justified, even if the social network was used to bully someone to death or help plan a terrorist attack.
Bosworth acknowledged that he wrote the memo but said he no longer agrees with the post today and “didn’t agree with it even when I wrote it.” He is seen as an outspoken figure at Facebook, the outlet reported, known for being blunt.
The document showcases Facebook executives’ awareness of its power, both good and bad, years before the company was embroiled in controversy over the misuse of user data. Earlier this month, The New York Times reported that the data firm Cambridge Analytica misused the data of 50 million people, prompting calls for Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg to testify before Congress.
Read the full memo at BuzzFeed News.