Facebook

 

Opening October 1, the film The Social Network about Facebook got some major buzz after its screening at The New York Film Festival.  One critic gushed that it's "this generation's Citizen Kane."

The handful of Noepe readers know I abandoned Facebook last year because I was no longer comfortable posting my experiences, opinions, pictures and feelings on a network where privacy is a fluid value that takes a back seat to monetizing members' content.

Vanity Fair's October issue just crowned Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg number 1 on its 16th Annual New Establishment list, ahead of Steve Jobs in the second spot, and Google's Sergey Brin, Larry Page and Eric Schmidt at number 3, reporting that:

"In June, at The Wall Street Journal’s D8 conference, as columnists Walter Mossberg and Kara Swisher interrogated him about privacy issues, Zuckerberg appeared uncomfortable, sweated profusely, and even—gasp!—took off his signature black hoodie."

Even less flattering, The New Yorker, in its recent article The Face of Facebook, published some of Zuckerberg's IMs during his short time at Harvard that were used in recent litigation.

The IMs speak volumes.

"In another exchange leaked to Silicon Alley Insider, Zuckerberg explained to a friend that his control of Facebook gave him access to any information he wanted on any Harvard student:

Zuck: yea so if you ever need info about anyone at harvard
Zuck: just ask
Zuck: i have over 4000 emails, pictures, addresses, sns
Friend: what? how'd you manage that one?
Zuck: people just submitted it
Zuck: they 'trust me'
Zuck: dumb fucks

So what should a Westchester, NY-raised, Exeter grad and Harvard drop out do when a major motion picture is about to trash your already sullied reputation?

As reported today in The Wall Street Journal:

"Mr. Zuckerberg is setting up a foundation with $100 million of Facebook's closely held stock to be used to improve education in America, with the primary goal of helping Newark, NJ. The announcement of the gift has been planned for Friday on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" show, which has been using this week to draw attention to education.

"Mr. Zuckerberg's pledge comes as the company he founded confronts a Hollywood film's scathing depiction of the executive. 'The Social Network,' which opens in wide U.S. release Oct. 1, suggests Mr. Zuckerberg may have stolen the idea for his social-networking site

Italics mine.