Frances Haugen, a former product manager at Facebook who leaked documents to The Wall Street Journal and lawmakers in 2021, was presented with the Distinguished Alumni Award by Iowa City West High School principal Mitch Gross during a commencement ceremony Sunday.
"It's our responsibility to figure out what to do with social media and how to ensure it helps the public access and digest information," Haugen told the graduates at her alma mater.
Haugen worked for Facebook for nearly two years on the civic integrity team, charged with combating election interference and misinformation. She reviewed thousands of documents over several weeks before leaving the company in May 2021.
"The reality is, social media is not a mirror. Some content gets distribution and other content doesn't," Haugen said. "Because of unaccountable algorithms that we never get to weigh in on. Social media is not a mirror. It's an amplifier. Content that is sensationalistic draws attention, draws engagement. And as a result is shown to more people more often. That's where it gets dangerous."
Haugen told the audience at Xtream Arena in Coralville that she doesn’t believe any person is likely to give up on using social media when dance routines, recipes and comments with friends can provide value in their lives.
More:Long before becoming the 'Facebook whistleblower,' Frances Haugen was a curious student in Iowa City
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