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The Definers scandal has seen Facebook hire an opposition research firm of the same name, Washington, DC, to link anti-Facebook groups to left-wing billionaire George Soros, who is also a Jew. Charges were then laid against Facebook. Campaigns of Semitism. The Facebook definitionists also reportedly tried to dispel criticism from their rival Apple by sending the press negative news about the company.
TechCrunch got an internal memo written by Schrage, who in June announced his departure from the company following the Cambridge Analytic scandal. In the memo, Schrage says he "knew and approved the decision to hire Definers and similar companies. I should have known about the decision to expand their mandate. . . I regret my own failure here.
The full note is found below, followed by an internal comment from Facebook's chief operating officer, Sheryl Sandberg, on the note:
Facebook internal memo by Elliot Schrage
Many of you have raised questions about our relationship with the firm Definers Consulting. We looked at it and, even though many of you are approaching the holidays, I wanted to share an update on what we have learned and the current situation:
Why did we hire Definers?
We hired Definers in 2017 as part of our efforts to diversify our CD advisors post-election. Like many companies, we needed to broaden our scope. We have also been faced with growing pressure from our competitors in the technology, telephone and media sectors who want the government to regulate us.
This pressure became particularly acute in September 2017 after the publication of the details of Russia's interference on our service. We hired businesses associated with both Republicans and Democrats – Definers was one of the companies affiliated with Republicans.
What did we ask them to do and what did they do?
As we continue to review our relationship with Definers, we know the following: We asked Definers to do what public relations firms usually do to help a company: send us clippings, conduct research, write documents, and contact journalists. .
Part of this work is termed opposition research, but I think it would be irresponsible and unprofessional for us not to understand the antecedents and potential conflicts of interest of our critics. This work can be used internally to inform our message and, where appropriate, it can be shared with journalists. This work is also helpful in helping to respond to unfair demands when Facebook has been chosen to be the subject of criticism and to differentiate ourselves positively from our competitors.
As pressure on Facebook increased throughout the year, the communications team is increasingly using Definers. At Sheryl's request, we're doing all the work they've done, but we've learned that as we get involved, more and more people are working with them on more projects and that the relationship was less centrally managed.
Did we ask them to work on George Soros?
Yes. In January 2018, investor and philanthropist George Soros attacked Facebook during a speech in Davos, calling us a "threat to society." We had never heard such criticism from him and we wanted to know if he had any financial motivation. Definers have searched for this using public information.
Later, when the "Freedom from Facebook" campaign became a so-called core coalition, the team asked Definers to help them understand the groups behind them. They learned that George Soros was financing several members of the coalition. They prepared documents and distributed them to the press to show that this was not just a spontaneous popular movement.
Did we ask them to work on our competitors?
Yes. As I said above, the Definers helped us to respond to the unfair claims that Facebook had been [sic] selected for criticism. They also helped us to distinguish ourselves from the competition.
Did we ask them to distribute or create fake news?
No.
Who was aware of this work and who signed it?
These decisions are the responsibility of the Communications Team Management. That's me. Mark and Sheryl counted on me to handle this without controversy.
I knew and approved the decision to hire Definers and similar companies. I should have known about the decision to expand their mandate. Over the last ten years, I have put in place a management system that appeals to teams to escalate problems if they are not comfortable with a project, the value that they have. It will bring or the risks that it creates. This system has failed here and I'm sorry I let you down. I regret my own failure here.
Why did we stop working with them?
Mark asked us to re-evaluate how we work with communication consultants. It's not about Definers. It's about us, not them.
Mark made it clear that because Facebook is a mission-driven company, he wanted to impose higher standards. It is uncomfortable to rely on an outside company to make decisions about how we will defend our mission, our policies, our competitors and our critics until it can become familiar with with our management, our monitoring and our progressivity.
Where are we now?
Many people in the company feel uncomfortable discovering this work. Many members of the communications team feel attacked by the press and even by their colleagues. I am deeply disappointed that so many internal discussions and fingerings have become public. This poses a serious threat to our culture and our ability to work together in these difficult times.
Our culture has long been going fast and taking risks. Often we have acted too fast and we are still learning and we are always trying to do our best. This will be no exception.
What happens next?
Our legal team continues to review our work with Definers to understand what has happened. Mark and Sheryl also asked Nick Clegg to review all of our work with communications consultants and propose management principles and processes to guide the work of the team. We all want to ensure that our advisors and consultants better reflect the values and culture of Facebook.
Thank you for sharing that, Elliot.
I would like to point out that I oversee our communications team and take full responsibility for their work as well as the public relations agencies that work with us. I really believe we have a world-class communications team and I want to acknowledge the tremendous pressure the team has had over the past year.
When I read the article in The New York Times last week, I did not remember a company called Definers. I asked our team to review the work that the Definers did for us and to check if anything had crossed my desk. Some of their work was incorporated into the documents that were presented to me and I received a small number of emails in which Definers was referenced.
I also want to point out that no one intended to take part in an anti-Semitic story against Mr. Soros or anyone else. Being Jewish is an essential part of my personality and our society is firmly opposed to hatred. The idea that our work has been interpreted as anti-Semitic is for me odious and deeply personal.
I know this has been a distraction at a time when you all work very hard to end the year – and I'm sorry. As I said to All All Hands, I deeply believe in the work we do and I am very grateful to you for doing so much every day. Thanksgiving seems like a good time to say a big thank you again.
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