Advocates Protest at Facebook DC, Demand Breakup

Regulators should immediately break up Facebook and act against its entities, protesters said outside the company’s lobbying headquarters in Washington on Tuesday. Participants told us the company hasn’t been responsive to specific demands, is incapable of self-correcting and has built a large U.S. corporate lobbying operation.

“As important as it is for Facebook to self-correct, there’s no chance of that being adequate,” said Public Citizen President Robert Weissman. Advocates' ongoing dialogue with the company hasn’t resulted in any “meaningful reform,” and Facebook’s outside political influence is a key hurdle to congressional action.

About a dozen protesters gathered. They posted a series of Facebook’s alleged offenses on the Chinatown building and listed them while passing around a megaphone. Police were present and directed traffic and participants. A few media members and photographers gathered with protesters for about 45 minutes starting at noon. Facebook didn’t comment.

Organizers believe Facebook “hasn’t responded at all to this action or to the fact that this list has been compiled,” said MediaJustice National Field Organizer Erin Shields. “That’s par for the course for Facebook to not say anything until it becomes a PR nightmare.” Lobbying shows the company isn’t open to regulation, she said. Facebook reported about $4.8 million in Q1 lobbying expenses. Shields argued that regulators aren’t “getting at the main issues of Facebook in a really serious way,” noting recent fines. She’s cautiously optimistic about the expected confirmation of FTC nominee Lina Khan (see 2105120063). “Democrats can be a little more savvy on this, but just because a Democrat is empowered doesn’t mean there’s going to be substantive change,” she said. “I’ll wait and see.”

Enforcers with a mindset like Khan or FTC Commissioner Rohit Chopra have shown they will back their words with action, said Liberation in a Generation Policy Director Emanuel Nieves. They will use their resources that have largely gone untouched or untapped and help “rein these companies in further,” he said.

There wasn’t advance notice given to Facebook about the protest, said Weissman. In addition to a company breakup, the protesters demanded comprehensive privacy legislation to “attack” Facebook’s surveillance business model, he said.

Weismann contended the company “has handed over control to an algorithm that furthers hate and racism and meanness as a business practice,” he told the protest. “We’re not looking for Facebook to control itself. We’re demanding that our government bring this company to heel. That means breaking it up. That means regulating its different parts. That means holding its executives and leaders accountable.” He noted the combined lobbying expenditure of Facebook and Google exceeds that of the U.S. news industry.

Action Center on Race and the Economy Deputy Campaign Director Ramah Kudaimi accused Facebook of removing users and content documenting Israeli “brutality and war crimes” against Palestinians. American Economic Liberties Project Communications Director Robyn Shapiro criticized Facebook’s market research program, which she said was used to “spy” on teens and young adults between 13-35 to get data on browsing, location, message, photos, search and Amazon order history. It shut the program down after it was “exposed” by the press, she said: Instagram’s location tracking practices likely violated the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act.

Nothing’s changed in the three years since consumer advocates met with Facebook at company offices, Shields told the gathering. She noted Facebook’s lobbying effort to strengthen its own interests in the debate over Communications Decency Act Section 230. It’s all an effort to “solidify its monopoly power and crush competition from more decentralized platforms,” she said.

Protesters highlighted what they called abuses of political interference, market monopolization, privacy, data security, government intrusion, harms to children, hate, discrimination, misinformation and “global lawlessness.” The “totality” of abuses “overwhelmingly makes the case for a breakup and discipline for this out of control company,” said Weissman.

The campaign Freedom From Facebook and Google announced support Tuesday from Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Rep. Mondaire Jones, D-N.Y. The group is targeting the Biden administration and Congress to break up the two tech companies.