Delay, Deny and Deflect: How Facebook’s Leaders Fought Through Crisis | NYT

Another busy week for Facebook's PR department; also see Facebook Cuts Ties With Definers Public Affairs Following Outcry | NYT, Who does Facebook fire after a bombshell New York Times investigation? | Recode, and (in other Facebook news) Quitting Instagram: She’s one of the millions disillusioned with social media. But she also helped create it. | Washington Post

"But as evidence accumulated that Facebook’s power could also be exploited to disrupt elections, broadcast viral propaganda and inspire deadly campaigns of hate around the globe, Mr. Zuckerberg and Ms. Sandberg stumbled. Bent on growth, the pair ignored warning signs and then sought to conceal them from public view. At critical moments over the last three years, they were distracted by personal projects, and passed off security and policy decisions to subordinates, according to current and former executives.

When Facebook users learned last spring that the company had compromised their privacy in its rush to expand, allowing access to the personal information of tens of millions of people to a political data firm linked to President Trump, Facebook sought to deflect blame and mask the extent of the problem.

And when that failed — as the company’s stock price plummeted and it faced a consumer backlash — Facebook went on the attack."

Delay, Deny and Deflect: How Facebook’s Leaders Fought Through Crisis | NYT