Wall Street Journal reporter Jeff Horwitz first met to Frances Haugen which is now referred to as the Facebook whistleblower late in the year. He tried to connect with additional sources at Facebook to understand how it managed the content on its platforms in the lead up to the 2020 election.
He's has tried "the old LinkedIn way of contacting sources to aid in source development," the author said in an interview with the "Reliable Sources" podcast.
This is when journalists make use of the professional social media network to communicate with hundreds of employees in the hope of receiving a response from two or three. The truth is that I "did not hear from anyone in a one month,"" Horwitz said.
In November 2020 Facebook disbanded its Civic Integrity team. The group was accused of a variety of controversies regarding the security of elections and interference in the run-up to the voting.
"The day I first was informed by Frances was also the day the civic team was defunct," Horwitz said.
He eventually earned Haugen's respect as well as access to an abundance of research conducted by the company. However "the first incident that occurred was that she did a thorough vetting about me" the man said. It was evident that she was considering making a statement but "I did not know at the moment that she was planning to take this step and so meticulous."
Horwitz revealed that Haugen was extremely disturbed by the effects of Facebook's presence around the globe. She made this clear during her Congressional statement on the 5th of October: "My fear is that without action, the divisive and extremist actions we witness today are just an initial phase," she said. "What we witnessed in Myanmar and, more recently, in Ethiopia are just the beginning of the chapters of a narrative that is that is so frightening, no one wants to finish reading it."
However, in her initial discussions to the Journal reporter she didn't expect to appear on Capitol Hill and become a well-known name in the eyes of millions.
After the exchange through LinkedIn The reporter and the source met face-to-face and took an "walk through the forest" on the hill close to Oakland, California. Haugen was trying to understand the motives of the source and in turn, his motives. She also suggested a pseudonym "Sean," as a tribute to a deceased friend.
Horwitz began to inform his editors what "Sean" was communicating with his. The Facebook Files series was born.
Now, looking back, Horwitz says, Facebook Files was "the most important thing I've ever done." But it's not finished yet Horwitz says it's possible to write thousands of words more right now. He also confirmed that there are additional stories being developed.
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