An employee of Facebook that became a top whistleblower on the Social Media giant,  has come forward.  In giving an interview on 60 minutes on CBS, the employee made a number of massive allegations..here are 4 of them.

Having services as Former product manager of the vivid misinformation team, the whistleblower has been identified as Frances Haugen, 37.

Claim 1: Facebook Has Made A Priority Of ‘Growth Over Safety’

Ms Haugen has made a number of massive allegations against the Tech giant. Her first claim that we will examine is the policy that Facebook puts safety behind it’s growth objectives. Although it is hard to find any successful company that doesn’t prioritise growth, Haugen claims that safety takes a back seat to that goal.

How has Facebook responded? Well, according to the BBC, Facebook said that the claim was misleading in that it was not a true reflection of the whole picture, and was therefore misleading.

What evidence does Haugen have to back up her claim? Apparently, before leaving Facebook, Ms Haugen took documents and memos that corroborated her claims. These documents have been released by the Wall Street Journal over 3 weeks, and have been coined as ‘the Facebook files’.

Claim 2: Facebook Has Differing Standards According To Influence

The 2nd claim that Haugen has made is that Facebook doesn’t treat users equally. She claims that people of influence, a term that would include politicians, celebs, and other high profile users, were treated more favourably by the Tech giant. How so?

Moderation has come to the fore in recent times, and rightly so. However Haugen claims that people of power were not subject to the same standards of moderation as your ‘average Joe’. The allegation must be, therefore, that Facebook looks after those who look after it.

Ms Haugen’s claim is damaging in that it is a claim that makes a whiff of corrupt double standards, which in turn, would mean that Facebook doesn’t value it’s loyal working class base.

Claim 3: Instagram Exacerbates Teenagers’ Angst

This allegation against Facebook, relates to it’s ownership of Instagram. The claim is that Instagram negatively affects Teenagers mental health..and Facebook has found this to have some truth.

However, the claim says that this is understating the issue.he allegation takes this issue further. Haugen’s claim is that Facebook knows full well that Instagram has actually become a ‘toxic’ place for teenagers to use. Despite knowing this, Facebook is allegedly not sharing the true gravity of the situation, according to Ms Haugen.

Whilst no one argues that teenagers, especially teenage girls, do have body image issues, the claim is being made that 32% of teenage girls feel that those negative feelings and emotions are made worse by Instagram.

Whilst any statistic of this kind is serious, Facebook counters that the leaks were designed to show it in a bad light, and that Instagram has a positive influence on teenagers, but that this fact is not being highlighted, presumably to enhance the sensationalism of the claim.

Claim 4: The Capitol Hill Violence Was ‘Fuelled’ By Facebook

The last of Ms Haugen’s most damaging of claims relates to the Capitol Hill Violence, and Facebook’s influence in it.

Whilst Facebook does have ‘safety systems’ to prevent misinformation, Haugen claims that these are selectively used only. In this instance, her claim is that these systems were used for part of the US election, but not used to prevent the Capitol Hill Violence. Her is what she said on the matter:

“As soon as the election was over they turned them back off, or they changed the settings to what they were before, to prioritise growth over safety, and that really feels like a betrayal of democracy.” 

Whilst this claim is very serious, Facebook has a different view understandably. The Vice President of Global Affairs, a chap named Nick Clegg dismissed the claim completely, saying:

“I think it gives people false comfort to assume that there must be a technological, or technical, explanation for the issues of political polarisation in the United States,”

What Effect Will This Have On Facebook

Of course, many people will continue to use the Social Media giant, irrespective of the charges and claims.

However, the more serious problem relates to possible oversight and regulations. The authorities in the United States are reportedly ‘concerned’ with the claims.

Should those claims be believed, or even seen as necessary to protect against, then Facebook’s goal of continued growth could be strongly impacted. This, in turn, could give a ‘leg up’ to competitors.