Mark Zuckerberg

Facebook, Elections & the Spin

Mark Zuckerberg, on first day back from paternity leave, posted his response to the recent questions being raised about the company and its role in elections. Much of the sound and fury has been focused on the “Russian connection.” But focusing on this issue, making it all about elections misses that larger point. And perhaps I thought it was a good idea to ask Mark this question. And I did as a comment on his Facebook update. Here is what I asked him and Sheryl Sandberg:

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Technology
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Deciding Our f8

Jason Kincaid, former staff writer for Techcrunch is now pursuing a career in writing comedy. He is an astute observer of the world around us, and I particularly enjoyed his take on Mark Zuckerberg’s memo to the planet.

Tech companies speak in half-truths, so it’s prudent to move past Zuckerberg’s obvious motivations — like assuaging the guilty consciences of his employees — and ask what other forces are driving this change. Could it be that as News Feed trends away from friends and toward undifferentiated news and video, it becomes less defensible? ….

… I say we take him at face value. Mark Zuckerberg needs our help shaping our global future — which, given those 1.86 billion users, will require a lot more transparency on his part. And together, we must be vigilant against the many ways Facebook mechanically conspires against the better angels of its nature.

Musings
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Worth Reading: Ethereum, Falling Pando & Tech’s immortality obsession

Many of us in California are bracing for a long windy and wet weekend. And if you’re like me, you will holed up at home and need something to do. I have a handful of stories that might be worth reading. A few of which are especially “smart takes” about recent developments in the technology industry. 

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Musings
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From Tech’s Empathy Vacuum to Zuck’s 2017 Challenge

Late November last year, I wrote a piece about Silicon Valley’s Empathy Vacuum for The New Yorker. It seemed to have struck a chord with a lot of people, especially in our industry. I am glad we started to talk about the issues we don’t normally talk about — the human consequence of disruption and what (if any role) technology industry should be playing during this period of whiplash inducing change.

From a local radio station in Los Angeles to Twit to Marketplace on NPR and the BBC — I was asked: what should we be doing? We can do a lot, and let’s start by having a conversation with those being disrupted. The change is hard, and it is harder for many who don’t live in the bubble of Silicon Valley. How about we #listenbetter and try and visit places we normally don’t go — rest of the country that isn’t Silicon Valley or New York.

Today,

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Musings
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Facebook’s Affordable Housing Efforts: Not Enough

First of all, kudos to Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg and team for recognizing the issues around affordable housing in the area of the technology boom. For more context, here is a statement that Mark published on his Facebook page.

Affordable housing is an important problem across the world. Our goal is to connect people everywhere, and that starts with being good neighbors in our local community.

For all the opportunity and jobs the technology industry has created, it has also made the Bay Area a less affordable place to live. We recognize our growth contributes to these challenges, and we’re committed to helping solve them so people can afford to live and work here.

Today we’re announcing a partnership with community groups and the governments of East Palo Alto and Menlo Park to create more affordable housing, help more people stay in their homes, and offer job training. We’re committing $20 million to jump

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Musings
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A Eulogy For San Francisco’s Past

The New Yorker just posted my latest piece for them – it is a eulogy for Wilkes Bashford, a clothier and a style maker that put San Francisco on the fashion map. Bashford died recently and his passing in many ways bookends a San Francisco before the Internet. It was ironic that just a few days after his death, Mark Zuckerberg posted the photo of his wardrobe – great t-shirts and grey hoodies. It is the sign of the times.

Work
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Zuck, Dick and the 90-Day Curse

Facebook CEO and co-founder Mark Zuckerberg is one of a handful of large company executives who holds a public town hall–like meeting (aka ask-me-anything session). This is a crucial and well-appreciated touch by the leader of a company that intersects with our daily lives at every turn. It is a place for our collective memories, discourse and cat photos. I am surprised that more consumer-oriented companies don’t do this more often. It would be great to see Uber or Airbnb CEOs do this on a quarterly basis.

[quote]The more power you have as a CEO, the easier it is for you to do what you think is right and ignore people pushing for shorter term interests.[/quote] There have been times when Mark and I have not agreed — about Internet.org, for example — but I appreciate that he appreciates an alternative point of view. The town hall is a good way for him

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Musings
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Idiots & their Zuck’s Hoodie theory

This analyst is smoking stuff that is outside the realm of legality.

“Mark and his signature hoodie: He’s actually showing investors he doesn’t care that much; he’s going to be him. I think that’s a mark of immaturity. I think that he has to realize he’s bringing investors in as a new constituency right now, and I think he’s got to show them the respect that they deserve because he’s asking them for their money.” Michael Pachter, an analyst for Wedbush Securities. (via Bloomberg)

Now if you were looking for a problem with Zuckerberg’s hoodie, then you should see it for what it really is: a fashion abomination. Don’t tell me that the Social Network movie and the Facebook craze hasn’t helped with the hoodie-wearing trend. The hoodie madness has spread so wide and so far that even respectable designers such as Ted Baker are selling their own spin on the hoodie.

Question:

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Musings
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