Former Facebook executive Sheryl Sandberg is facing serious allegations from a former employee, Sarah Wynn-Williams, in her newly published memoir, Careless People: A Cautionary Tale of Power, Greed, and Lost Idealism. Wynn-Williams, who worked at Facebook for six years, alleges that Sandberg spent $13,000 on lingerie for both herself and a young female assistant during a trip to Europe. Wynn-Williams claims that Sandberg instructed her to purchase the lingerie regardless of the cost.
The memoir also reveals unsettling details of their time together on the trip. According to Wynn-Williams, she and Sandberg, along with the 26-year-old assistant, engaged in intimate behavior during a long drive across Europe, including taking turns sleeping in each other’s laps and stroking each other’s hair.
In another shocking account, Wynn-Williams describes a flight home on a private jet, where Sandberg, dressed in pajamas, allegedly became irritated when Wynn-Williams declined her offer to join her in “the only bed on the plane.”
Meta, Facebook’s parent company, has responded to these allegations by discrediting Wynn-Williams. A spokesperson stated that Wynn-Williams had been fired from the company in 2017 due to poor performance and toxic behaviour. They further emphasized that these new claims were baseless and part of an ongoing effort by Wynn-Williams to profit from anti-Facebook activism.
In addition to Sandberg, Wynn-Williams describes Facebook’s former vice president of US policy, Joel Kaplan, as a source of discomfort. She recounts instances where Kaplan allegedly made inappropriate remarks and pressed her during a difficult period in her life, including during her maternity leave after a life-threatening birth complication. Kaplan was later cleared of any wrongdoing after an internal investigation.
Wynn-Williams also offers a critical portrayal of Facebook’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg, describing him as increasingly focused on public image and politics, and recounting an incident where he allegedly expressed admiration for President Andrew Jackson’s controversial actions.
In the memoir, Wynn-Williams accuses Facebook of pursuing secretive efforts to re-enter the Chinese market, including developing censorship tools and offering briefings to Chinese officials about new technologies like AI. She suggests that Zuckerberg sought to align Facebook with the Chinese Communist Party, an effort that was allegedly kept hidden from U.S. Congress.
Careless People paints a damning picture of Facebook’s leadership, likening Zuckerberg and Sandberg to characters from The Great Gatsby, recklessly destroying things and leaving others to deal with the consequences.