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Meta puts stop on promotion of tell-all book by former employee
- wisienkas 2y agoWas this just "manually" removed from the most trending on Hacker News?
- Aurornis 2y agoNo, HN is very algorithmic. Stories get demoted if the comment or voting pattern triggers certain patterns that are associated with low quality discussion or I believe if enough users flag it. I think people are just tired of seeing this obvious book promotion story get reposted multiple times per day.
- cjbenedikt 2y agoBest promotion the book coukd get IMO
- c16 2y agoBought this on Spotify. Thanks Zuck for bringing it to my attention.
- razodactyl 2y agoA gag order on a book?
- razodactyl 2y ago...Streisand effect about to hit.
- rubyfan 2y agoSeems like it’s just preventing the author from promoting it due to some provision of a severance agreement. Doesn’t seem to actually prevent publication.
- aqme28 2y agoSeems like Meta would rather promote it themselves
- blitzar 2y agoReminds me of watching The Social Network after hearing that Zuckerberg's "feelings were hurt" by the portrayal of him.
- cddotdotslash 2y agoI bought this book immediately after the last post here on HN about it. Good read so far!
- xz18r 2y agohttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Streisand_effect https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Streisand_effect
- moomin 2y agoThe publisher is rushing a new cover with “The book Facebook doesn’t want you to read.” in huge letters, I imagine.
- mtmail 2y agoOn amazon.de the product title is "Careless People: The explosive memoir that Meta doesn't want you to read" but the book cover hasn't been changed yet.
- Aurornis 2y agoI think it’s naive to believe both the author and the publisher didn’t plan for this to happen. The publisher loves this because they get the publicity and they aren’t the target of the broken contract dispute.
- ethagnawl 2y agoI just ordered it on my Kobo. If not for Zuck's tantrum, there's almost no chance I would have read it.
- zombot 2y agoIf they yowl so loudly, it must have hit a nerve.
- tigerBL00D 2y agoJust got an audiobook from Kindle. This legal development pushed me over the edge of curiosity. Very interesting.
- unethical_ban 2y agoSidenote: Is there a way to read my legally purchased Kobo book without downloading Adobe on my linux laptop?
- throawayonthe 2y ago[dead]
- sphars 2y agoAssuming these are adobe digital edition (.ascm files), you can remove the DRM with calibre and the DeDRM plugin. You'll need the adobe key from an authorized machine first (a windows VM should work) and then copy the key over to the Linux install of calibre. This is what I do on my Linux machine https://github.com/noDRM/DeDRM_tools https://github.com/noDRM/DeDRM_tools
- blitzar 2y agoFree speech, I fear, is in retreat.
- ghaff 2y agoEh, you can initiate legal proceedings for anything and it's doubtless inconvenient (and expensive) to be on the receiving end from a company doing so. It's also nothing especially new.
- blitzar 2y agoI hope the "free speech absolutists" in positions of power are able to reclaim some of these retreating powers.
- flanked-evergl 2y agoIf the employee entered into a legal contract that limits their speech, then they, of course, should face consequences if they breach said contract. Such contracts may be crap, Facebook may be horrible, Zuck may be whatever C word you think rhymes with his name, but a contract should be kept.
- ghaff 2y agoPer some of the discussion in earlier thread related to this, I don't know what NDA/severance agreement provisions were violated in the writing of this book. I do know that absent some compelling public interest, I'd let bygones be bygones and maybe just something to tell friends over drinks. I wouldn't have anything particularly interesting to dish about any former employer that the public would care about. I have some historical knowledge--not all of which I can technically fully share--and am pretty circumspect about doing so. But nothing here is whistleblowing as far as I'm aware.
- WeylandYutani 2y agoThat is bullshit. With that kind of thinking there would never be a whistleblower or political scandal. Everything can be swept under the carpet because someone signed an NDA.
- bryant 2y agoIn all seriousness (aside from all the comments stating they'd ordered it. Hey, I just did myself), it's interesting seeing Meta go after the employee but seemingly not make much of an effort to go after the publisher. What would they hope to gain going after any of it so late anyway? Surely if their goal is to dissuade others from publishing tell-alls, the resulting publicity from their suits against this one would do the opposite? If they really wanted to stop the book, they should've gone after it early before publication, but it seems like they dropped the ball and are doing more damage to themselves trying to catch up.
- infecto 2y agoIn my mind its one of those events that is hard to know the exact motives. Could be as simple as enforcing the standard of their contracts or as extreme as actual retribution.
- datavirtue 2y agoWhy consume resources? Retribution.
- infecto 2y agoThat simply fits your desire/narrative. There is no way to know without being an insider.
- datavirtue 2y agoI'm almost 50 years old. I know how shit works.
- blitzar 2y agoPublishers have high priced lawyers on retainer (who will copy and paste the same winning brief they have served anytime they have been challenged before) - individuals are resource constrained.
- neogodless 2y agoPrevious discussion: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=43349473 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=43349473 Meta is trying to stop a former employee from promoting her book about Facebook (engadget.com) 285 points by SanjayMehta 4 days ago | 105 comments
- mupuff1234 2y agoI hope they make a movie out of it.
- 6stringmerc 2y agoFrom a screenwriter perspective this would be an uphill battle - the risk of a studio / production company facing legal retaliation by social media enterprises would be financially unwise. In the US making money is the goal of cinema, art is a distant second.
- deleted 2y ago[deleted]
- modelorona 2y agoWaiting on The Social Network pt. 2
- teeray 2y ago“The Anti-Social Network”
- datavirtue 2y agoThe producers are waiting for Zuck to get attacked by a mob, go out of business, or end up in prison first. They are hoping for all three.
- epoxy_sauce 2y agoOf all of em Zuck seems to be at highest risk of some wildcard stuff happening. Unless musk or bezos personally get on rocket. I don't wish ill of anyone ofc but with his forays into extreme forms of recreation and aviation and such there's a chance of a different surprise story.
- ohgr 2y agoWell I’m certainly going to be reading it now.
- ryukoposting 2y agoCool! Buying it on Barnes & Noble now. Hadn't heard of it.
- diego_moita 2y agoFree speech for me, not for thee.
- deleted 2y ago[deleted]
- zombot 2y agoIf the facts are against you, argue the law. If the law is against you, argue the facts. If the law and the facts are against you, pound the table and yell like hell. https://blog.simplejustice.us/2017/04/11/filipovics-dilemma-when-facts-are-against-you/ https://blog.simplejustice.us/2017/04/11/filipovics-dilemma-...
- amiga386 2y agoSide note: this is Carl Sandburg's 1936 version of the popular quote. Other versions, including one from 1934, improve on the adage with a threefold repetition of "pound" or "hammer" that contrasts two different senses of the word, e.g. "If you have the facts on your side, hammer the facts. If you have the law on your side, hammer the law. If you have neither the facts nor the law, hammer the table." https://quoteinvestigator.com/2010/07/04/legal-adage/ https://quoteinvestigator.com/2010/07/04/legal-adage/
- shadowgovt 2y agoMeanwhile, "Chaos Monkeys" is still in publication and is a pretty open talk on the early days of Facebook. I can't escape the notion that either they didn't have their earlier employees sign quite so binding agreements or the company had some incentive not to sue that man.
- ghaff 2y agoOr they just didn't bother at the time.
- evanelias 2y agoThe author of Chaos Monkeys was hired by Facebook in 2011, the same year as the author of Careless People. Facebook launched in 2004, so in both cases it isn't exactly "early days" of the company, especially compared to The Accidental Billionaires (which The Social Network film was based on).
- 6stringmerc 2y agoA strong chilling effect by going after the author directly - no late night talk shows, podcasts, etc. My plan if I was at Macmillan? Send out the book’s Editor on tour, on the double. At this level, the Editor is well qualified to speak to the contents and integrity of the work. As they’re not bound by this ruling, it can be a useful talking point about the merit of the book - “I wouldn’t be here if Meta wasn’t embarrassed by the truth” has a nice ring to it.
- NickC25 2y agoWell, that settles it - I'll have to buy a copy and give it a read. Hey Mark, want people to not read it? How about you go donate a few hundred billion to the country and communities that supported you and your company from day 1, instead of avoiding taxation and building a doomsday bunker in New Zealand.
- meitham 2y agoI too am going to buy one and read, but genuinely curious what made you support Mark in the beginning of Facebook? Wasn’t he always known as a douchebag even in his university days?
- NickC25 2y agoI used Facebook back in 2005. I was in high school, it was cool. In 2006, my friend (who went to Temple in Scarsdale, NY with the Zuckerberg family) told me in no uncertain terms that Mark was easily the biggest egotistical asshole he'd ever met - a highly intelligent but deeply unethical jerk and overall not a good person. I stopped using Facebook then and there. I then found out that the Winklevoss twins were involved. I'm from their hometown. They are not good people. I haven't touched a Meta/FB product since then save for WhatsApp. My business has an IG page but I don't touch it.
- Aurornis 2y ago> Well, that settles it - I'll have to buy a copy and give it a read. Honestly, I’ll be surprised if this turns out to be any different than all of the other “explosive tell-all memoirs” of the past. These books usually play into people’s desire to believe that the enemy of their enemy is their friend. Then you read the book and realize that the author is trying really hard to paint themselves as an outsider despite being suspiciously involved with the people you’re supposed to dislike. I suspect this lawsuit was predicted and possibly welcomed for the publicity. It’s amazing how many people are rushing to give this person money because they think it will hurt Meta, even though they’ll probably roll their eyes at gossipy memoir books like this. At least take a few seconds to watch the interviews with the author to realize what type of person you’re aligning with. If you’re expecting an anti-Zuckerberg hero you’re probably going to be disappointed when you realize you’ve been tricked into giving money and attention to another person who was gunning for the executive ranks of Meta using the same tricks and behaviors as everyone else.
- Tewboo 2y agoIt's no surprise they'd want to silence that kind of negative PR. The tech industry can be pretty cutthroat.
- tibbydudeza 2y agoThe Streisand Effect - best marketing plan ever !!!!. The book is already in the Amazon best seller list.
- deleted 2y ago[deleted]
- abeppu 2y ago> A Meta spokesperson, Andy Stone, said in a post on Threads: “This ruling affirms that Sarah Wynn Williams’ false and defamatory book should never have been published”. ... this doesn't seem like an accurate statement and it seems like bad journalism for the Guardian to quote it without clarifying? Stopping the former employee from promoting the book does not on its own make a claim that the contents are false or defamatory.
- JakeStone 2y agoI should be getting my physical copy on Tuesday. Physical so that Bezos can't have it edited or deleted from my Kindle. Good job, Zuck! I didn't even know this book existed, and likely wouldn't have cared, until you decided to drop the hammer on her.
- disqard 2y agoI wish I could highlight your comment more -- the paper copy is more valuable for this reason.
- fsociety 2y agoI worked at Facebook and the amount of ex-FBers, especially OGs, speaking out against them on LinkedIn is staggering. I’ve debated doing a livestream of reading this book from start to finish, perhaps even in one sitting, because of what is happening here.
- hyperdimension 2y agoIf you do, please post a link here! The book is still backordered on bookshop.org.
- Fruitmaniac 2y agoThey just Streisanded themselves.
- outcoldman 2y agoI got the book from Apple Books. Downloaded and backed it up. I do not read books that much, but would love to finish this one. “I was on a private jet with Mark the day he finally understood that Facebook probably did put Donald Trump in the White House, and came to his own dark conclusions from that. But most days, working on policy at Facebook was way less like enacting a chapter from Machiavelli and way more like watching a bunch of fourteen-year-olds who’ve been given superpowers and an ungodly amount of money, as they jet around the world to figure out what power has bought and brought them.” Excerpt From Careless People Sarah Wynn-Williams
- 1vuio0pswjnm7 2y agoThe author still managed to give at least one interview before the arbitrator's decision. For example, https://www.thefp.com/p/meet-sarah-wynn-williams-facebooks https://www.thefp.com/p/meet-sarah-wynn-williams-facebooks Meta published a response to the book that only alleges the author's claims are "old" and does not suggest they are false. https://about.fb.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Sarah-Wynn-Williams-New-Book-Of-Old-News.pdf https://about.fb.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Sarah-Wynn-W... If the claims are false and defamatory, then why not sue the author for defamation. In the book, the author suggests she was harassed by two famous Facebook managers and then terminated when she complained. Apparently the book is a top seller on Amazon. Perhaps it does not need promotion by the author. The author has also filed a whistleblower complaint at the SEC re: the China issue. As a longtime HN reader I recall that Zuckerberg was a favorite of PG. The "ideal founder" or something like that.
- huijzer 2y ago[flagged]
- danorama 2y agoIt’s fair to question someone’s judgment based on their expressed opinions, and take that into account when evaluating what they say later on. Also, he may just have a different definition of “ideal” than some of us.
- FreakLegion 2y agoAll pg said, jokingly, was: >"I can be tricked by anyone who looks like Mark Zuckerberg. There was a guy once who we funded who was terrible. I said: 'How could he be bad? He looks like Zuckerberg!'"
- 1vuio0pswjnm7 2y agoThank you. This is what I was hoping for. Indeed it might have been a joke.
- simonsarris 2y agoIt's unsurprising that Meta would bring a legal case against someone who used to be their global director for public policy when that person signed a non-disparagement agreement. I also find it hard to think it was that bad if she stayed for seven years, but I don't have a strong opinion about the whole thing. This is aside from the story but it's weird how obvious it is that a PR company was hired to blitz this book, and there's been a drip of stories over the last week playing it up in various outlets with the hope that people will say "well that settles it, I'll have to buy the book! That will show Meta!" But its funny and a little bizarre that many comments over the last week say exactly that. It just feels too easy. But they're not getting some wily one-up on Meta (buying the book changes nothing, their own opinion is probably long settled), some PR firm is getting its job done. same thing/topic from 4 days ago with more people saying "I wasn't going to buy the book, but now I am": https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=43349473 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=43349473
- nijuashi 2y agoThis is the best advertisement of the book. I wasn’t even aware of the title until now.
- disqard 2y agoIs this book "Careless People: A Cautionary Tale of Power, Greed, and Lost Idealism" by Sarah Wynn-Williams? If someone can confirm this, then I'll make sure to tell everyone to avoid it.