New York
CNN
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Former Fb executive-turned-whistleblower Sarah Wynn-Williams says Meta is obstructing her from chatting with Congress about her experiences on the firm.
This arises from arbitration proceedings with the corporate after Wynn-Williams revealed her memoir “Careless People,” detailing her time on the social media large, earlier this month.
Meta moved shortly to cease her from selling or discussing the e-book, which it claimed contained “out-of-date” claims and “false accusations.” On the day of the e-book’s publication, the corporate filed an arbitration demand stating that the claims within the e-book violate a voluntary non-disparagement settlement she signed upon leaving the corporate. A day later, the arbitrator briefly ordered her to not make any “disparaging, important or in any other case detrimental feedback” associated to Meta and to cease selling the e-book.
That order is now stopping Wynn-Williams from responding to requests from lawmakers in a number of nations to debate her time on the firm, her attorneys wrote in a response within the arbitration proceedings obtained by CNN.
“Members of the US Congress, the Parliament of the UK, and the Parliament of the European Union have requested to talk with Ms. Wynn-Williams on the problems of public concern raised in her memoir,” together with the corporate’s interactions with the Chinese language authorities and Meta’s alleged harms to teen women, the doc, filed Tuesday, states. However underneath the order, Wynn-Williams “seems to be blocked from talking” with these lawmakers.
Wynn-Williams’ response within the arbitration proceedings has not been beforehand reported.
“Careless Individuals” contains hanging particulars about Wynn-Williams’ time on the firm, starting from the social media large’s efforts to increase into China and alleged sexual harassment by now-policy chief Joel Kaplan.
The arbitrator’s emergency order prevents Wynn-Williams from making any important feedback in regards to the firm even when she believes them to be true, based on a submitting Meta shared publicly earlier this month.
The emergency order additionally notes that Wynn-Williams just isn’t prevented or prohibited from “submitting a declare with a federal, state, or native authorities company that’s accountable for implementing a legislation on behalf of the federal government.” Nevertheless, her response states that as a result of legislative our bodies usually are not accountable for implementing legal guidelines, she is blocked from chatting with lawmakers.
A Meta spokesperson mentioned the corporate has no intention to intrude with Wynn-Williams’ authorized rights.
Wynn-Williams additionally filed a whistleblower criticism with the Securities and Trade Fee in April 2024 and with the Division of Justice in 2025, based on her submitting.
Wynn-Williams’ memoir comes as Meta has confronted years of scrutiny and elevated regulatory strain from lawmakers all over the world over points comparable to teen security and election misinformation. Two different former staff have additionally testified as whistleblowers, and the corporate’s executives have repeatedly been referred to as to hearings on Capitol Hill.
Wynn-Williams spent six years on the firm, now referred to as Meta, most not too long ago as director of world public coverage, earlier than she was fired in 2017, which the corporate mentioned was as a consequence of “poor efficiency and poisonous habits.” Wynn-Williams’ e-book implies that she was fired in retaliation for reporting sexual harassment.
Meta had despatched a letter to Wynn-Williams’ writer previous to the e-book’s publication, saying it had made “no try” to confirm her claims with the corporate and threatening authorized motion if the e-book contained false statements or implications. However regardless of Meta’s efforts to dam the e-book, it debuted this week on the New York Occasions’ greatest vendor checklist.
“The general public curiosity is struggling as a consequence of her incapability to reply to outreach from legislators, journalists, and the general public,” the doc states. It later provides: “The general public curiosity steadiness right here suggestions sharply in Ms. Wynn-Williams’s favor, as demonstrated by the curiosity in her proof from U.S., UK, EU and different nationwide and supra- nationwide legislatures and regulatory our bodies.”
