Meta’s Whistleblower Was Silent Onstage. But Her Tell-All Keeps Selling Facebook whistleblower Sarah Wynn-Williams sat in silence onstage at the Hay Festival in the United Kingdom after Meta obtained a legal order barring her from promoting her memoir. The incident occurred as she was seated between investigative journalist Carole Cadwalladr and Columbia University law professor Tim Wu, with the author remaining motionless for an hour without acknowledging the audience. The event marked a pivotal moment in the ongoing legal battle between Wynn-Williams and Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. Wynn-Williams, former Director of Global Public Policy at Facebook, authored the bestselling memoir Careless People: A Cautionary Tale of Power, Greed, and Lost Idealism, which details her six years at the company. The book alleges widespread misconduct, including sexual harassment and other potentially illegal behavior by CEO Mark Zuckerberg and other top executives. She describes her experience as akin to “watching a bunch of 14-year-olds who’ve been given superpowers and an ungodly amount of money” navigating global power dynamics. Meta’s legal actions against Wynn-Williams began after the book’s publication, with the company securing an emergency legal order to prevent her from publicly promoting it. The order, enforced through a binding arbitration agreement she signed during her 2017 severance, prohibits her from disparaging the company. Meta’s spokesperson confirmed that Wynn-Williams had signed such an agreement, which includes a non-disparagement clause. The company also filed a motion arguing that she violates the order “any time she appears in public in a place where she should know that her book is available for sale.#meta #sarah_wynnwilliams #carole_cadwalladr #tim_wu #hay_festival
