Saw almost all, if not all, of Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg's hearing in USA Senate and House in early April 2018; My short thoughts on it
Over two to three weeks, I managed to see almost the whole, if not the whole, of Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg's hearing in USA Senate and later in USA House of Representatives. The hearing happened on April 10th and April 11th (of 2018).
I found this to be a very educative exercise. The USA Congress is the law making body and has the power to enact legislation to curb any wrong doings by Facebook or any other Internet company in the USA, no matter how much money power that company has. Mr. Mark Zuckerberg was clearly deferential to USA Congress in this regard and I think that was wise of him.
The Senators and Congressmen and Congresswomen very clearly let Zuckerberg know that Facebook must co-operate with USA Congress in its efforts to prevent or limit wrongdoing on Facebook in matters like foreign interference in USA elections, selling banned material on Facebook including banned opioids which contributes to the horrible and tragic opioid epidemic in parts of the USA today, unfair "censoring" of some political views etc. Zuckerberg repeatedly defended Facebook's approach in general, while acknowledging and apologizing for some mistakes, including serious mistakes, it made. But he also clearly showed a willingness to work with USA Congress on some serious matters like selling of banned material including opioids on Facebook.
Zuckerberg also resisted, though in a very polite way, suggestions (and sometimes more than suggestions) from members of USA Congress about imposing significant financial penalties on Facebook if it did not meet certain criteria regarding user data privacy, wrongdoing on Facebook etc. If I recall correctly, Zuckerberg's resistance was mainly, or perhaps only, stoic silence when such suggestions were made but the body language seemed to make it clear that he was not in favour of it, and even resisting it.
Some members of Congress openly said that they do not want to increase regulation of Facebook (and other Internet companies) as they felt that would inhibit innovation, while some other members of Congress opined that stricter regulation was necessary. Zuckerberg was open to some regulation but expressed the view that the regulation should be right/appropriate.
It was fascinating to see this public interaction for nearly ten hours over two days between young billionaire Mark Zuckerberg, an example of USA innovation and spectacular success on the Internet, and many members from the most powerful government bodies in the USA, namely the USA Senate and USA House of Representatives.
Here are the youtube videos that I saw, some of them fully and some of them partly as it covered parts that I had already seen and/or heard in videos listed earlier (from my Facebook post & comments: https://www.facebook.com/ravi.s.iyer.7/posts/2128082730741626):
1) A 10 minute view: Zuckerberg's Senate hearing highlights in 10 minutes, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EgI_KAkSyCw
2) My God! This Senator really grilled Zuckerberg! Hmm. Ted Cruz makes Mark Zuckerberg Sweat During Congressional Testimony, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZLgHu1HLG1I, 5 min. 39 secs.
3) Senator Makes Mark Zuckerberg SPEECHLESS and UNCOMFORTABLE After Asking Him A Private Question!, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbBY1IsnRls, 11 min. 30 secs. Sen. John Cornyn talks about the mantra used by Facebook!
4) Senators Lindsay Graham and Amy Kloubacher, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WobZ-mw_YWQ, 11 min. 22 secs.
5) Telling it like it is! I think some USA Senators certainly tell it like it is. Sen. Ted Kennedy did some of that to Zuckerberg, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ooR4CIuz_NE, 5 min 18 secs.
6) Watch John Kennedy lecture Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahhAdMOP48Y, 5 min. 37 secs.
7) PART 1: Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg Testifies At Senate Judiciary Committee (FNN), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=woEq42aKEI4, 1 hr 50 mins.
8) PART 2: Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg Testifies At Senate Judiciary Committee (FNN), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I37macQoasQ, 1 hr. 28 mins
9) Facebook's CEO Mark Zuckerberg Testimony | Day 1, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyJosQBtzsw, around 5 hrs. 30 mins. Seems to be the full testimony for Day 1.
10) Facebook's CEO Mark Zuckerberg Testimony | Day 2, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Te_LKt5DpY, around 5 hrs.
I found this to be a very educative exercise. The USA Congress is the law making body and has the power to enact legislation to curb any wrong doings by Facebook or any other Internet company in the USA, no matter how much money power that company has. Mr. Mark Zuckerberg was clearly deferential to USA Congress in this regard and I think that was wise of him.
The Senators and Congressmen and Congresswomen very clearly let Zuckerberg know that Facebook must co-operate with USA Congress in its efforts to prevent or limit wrongdoing on Facebook in matters like foreign interference in USA elections, selling banned material on Facebook including banned opioids which contributes to the horrible and tragic opioid epidemic in parts of the USA today, unfair "censoring" of some political views etc. Zuckerberg repeatedly defended Facebook's approach in general, while acknowledging and apologizing for some mistakes, including serious mistakes, it made. But he also clearly showed a willingness to work with USA Congress on some serious matters like selling of banned material including opioids on Facebook.
Zuckerberg also resisted, though in a very polite way, suggestions (and sometimes more than suggestions) from members of USA Congress about imposing significant financial penalties on Facebook if it did not meet certain criteria regarding user data privacy, wrongdoing on Facebook etc. If I recall correctly, Zuckerberg's resistance was mainly, or perhaps only, stoic silence when such suggestions were made but the body language seemed to make it clear that he was not in favour of it, and even resisting it.
Some members of Congress openly said that they do not want to increase regulation of Facebook (and other Internet companies) as they felt that would inhibit innovation, while some other members of Congress opined that stricter regulation was necessary. Zuckerberg was open to some regulation but expressed the view that the regulation should be right/appropriate.
It was fascinating to see this public interaction for nearly ten hours over two days between young billionaire Mark Zuckerberg, an example of USA innovation and spectacular success on the Internet, and many members from the most powerful government bodies in the USA, namely the USA Senate and USA House of Representatives.
Here are the youtube videos that I saw, some of them fully and some of them partly as it covered parts that I had already seen and/or heard in videos listed earlier (from my Facebook post & comments: https://www.facebook.com/ravi.s.iyer.7/posts/2128082730741626):
1) A 10 minute view: Zuckerberg's Senate hearing highlights in 10 minutes, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EgI_KAkSyCw
2) My God! This Senator really grilled Zuckerberg! Hmm. Ted Cruz makes Mark Zuckerberg Sweat During Congressional Testimony, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZLgHu1HLG1I, 5 min. 39 secs.
3) Senator Makes Mark Zuckerberg SPEECHLESS and UNCOMFORTABLE After Asking Him A Private Question!, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbBY1IsnRls, 11 min. 30 secs. Sen. John Cornyn talks about the mantra used by Facebook!
4) Senators Lindsay Graham and Amy Kloubacher, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WobZ-mw_YWQ, 11 min. 22 secs.
5) Telling it like it is! I think some USA Senators certainly tell it like it is. Sen. Ted Kennedy did some of that to Zuckerberg, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ooR4CIuz_NE, 5 min 18 secs.
6) Watch John Kennedy lecture Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahhAdMOP48Y, 5 min. 37 secs.
7) PART 1: Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg Testifies At Senate Judiciary Committee (FNN), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=woEq42aKEI4, 1 hr 50 mins.
8) PART 2: Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg Testifies At Senate Judiciary Committee (FNN), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I37macQoasQ, 1 hr. 28 mins
9) Facebook's CEO Mark Zuckerberg Testimony | Day 1, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyJosQBtzsw, around 5 hrs. 30 mins. Seems to be the full testimony for Day 1.
10) Facebook's CEO Mark Zuckerberg Testimony | Day 2, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Te_LKt5DpY, around 5 hrs.
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