Facebook whistleblower, ‘Careless People’ author says company’s arbitration demand is keeping her from speaking to Congress

Former Facebook executive-turned-whistleblower Sarah Wynn-Williams wants out of a court order that’s blocking her from speaking to lawmakers about her experiences at the company and her new book, according to a court filing obtained by CNN.

Former Facebook executive-turned-whistleblower Sarah Wynn-Williams says Meta is blocking her from speaking to Congress about her experiences at the company. This arises from arbitration proceedings with the company after Wynn-Williams published her memoir “Careless People,” detailing her time at the social media giant, earlier this month. Meta moved quickly to stop her from promoting or discussing the book, which it claimed contained “out-of-date” claims and “false accusations.” On the day of the book’s publication, the company filed an arbitration demand stating that the claims in the book violate a voluntary non-disparagement agreement she signed upon leaving the company. A day later, the arbitrator temporarily ordered her not to make any “disparaging, critical or otherwise detrimental comments” related to Meta and to stop promoting the book. That order is now preventing Wynn-Williams from responding to requests from lawmakers in several countries to discuss her time at the company, her lawyers wrote in a response in the arbitration proceedings obtained by CNN. “Members of the United States Congress, the Parliament of the United Kingdom, and the Parliament of the European Union have requested to speak with Ms. Wynn-Williams on the issues of public concern raised in her memoir,” including the company’s interactions with the Chinese government and Meta’s alleged harms to teen girls, the document, filed Tuesday, states. But under the order, Wynn-Williams “appears to be blocked from speaking” with those lawmakers. Wynn-Williams’ response in the arbitration proceedings has not been previously reported.