Chris Hughes, Facebook’s co-founder and Mark Zuckerberg’s college roommate, recently made some public statements concerning Facebook’s practices. He is asking Zuckerberg and others to break it up the company. In an article recently published by the New York Times he stated, “Mark is a good, kind person. But I’m angry that his focus on growth led him to sacrifice security and civility for clicks. I’m disappointed in myself and the early Facebook team for not thinking more about how the News Feed algorithm could change our culture, influence elections and empower nationalist leaders. And I’m worried that Mark has surrounded himself with a team that reinforces his beliefs instead of challenging them.”
Needless to say, Hughes isn’t the first person to speak out about Facebook’s power and influence. Brian Acton, founder of WhatsApp, asked users to delete Facebook last year and a several prominent companies & celebrities did the same. It seems like new scandals, lawsuits, and privacy concerns surface every few months and Facebook has even come under fire from child advocacy groups. Many analysts believe the organization has gotten too big and breaking up the company would be a positive step. The question remains, will Zuckerberg listen?