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New York (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Meta moved quickly to stop her from promoting or discussing the book, which it claimed contained “out-of-date” claims and “false accusations.”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.
“Careless People” includes striking details about Wynn-Williams’ time at the company, ranging from the social media giant’s efforts to expand into China and alleged sexual harassment by now-policy chief Joel Kaplan.
The arbitrator’s emergency order prevents Wynn-Williams from making any critical comments about the company even if she believes them to be true, according to a filing Meta shared publicly earlier this month.
The emergency order also notes that Wynn-Williams is not prevented or prohibited from “filing a claim with a federal, state, or local government agency that is responsible for enforcing a law on behalf of the government.” However, her response states that because legislative bodies are not responsible for enforcing laws, she is blocked from speaking to lawmakers.
A Meta spokesperson said the company has no intention to interfere with Wynn-Williams’ legal rights.
Wynn-Williams also filed a whistleblower complaint with the Securities and Exchange Commission in April 2024 and with the Department of Justice in 2025, according to her filing.
Wynn-Williams’ memoir comes as Meta has faced years of scrutiny and increased regulatory pressure from lawmakers around the world over issues such as teen safety and election misinformation. Two other former employees have also testified as whistleblowers, and the company’s executives have repeatedly been called to hearings on Capitol Hill.
Wynn-Williams spent six years at the company, now called Meta, most recently as director of global public policy, before she was fired in 2017, which the company said was due to “poor performance and toxic behavior.” Wynn-Williams’ book implies that she was fired in retaliation for reporting sexual harassment.
Meta had sent a letter to Wynn-Williams’ publisher prior to the book’s publication, saying it had made “no attempt” to verify her claims with the company and threatening legal action if the book contained false statements or implications. But despite Meta’s efforts to block the book, it debuted this week on the New York Times’ best seller list.
“The public interest is suffering due to her inability to respond to outreach from legislators, journalists, and the public,” the document states. It later adds: “The public interest balance here tips sharply in Ms. Wynn-Williams’s favor, as demonstrated by the interest in her evidence from U.S., UK, EU and other national and supra- national legislatures and regulatory bodies.”
The-CNN-Wire
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