Hawley Says Muzzled Meta Whistleblower Will Testify Over China Dealings Next Week

Senator Josh Hawley, R-Mo., has announced that former Meta employee and whistleblower Sarah Wynn-Williams will testify next week before a Senate Judiciary Subcommittee. Wynn-Williams, whose tell-all memoir was blocked from publication, is expected to reveal troubling details about Meta's internal practices and alleged cooperation with foreign regimes, particularly the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

Hawley called Meta an "amoral and corrupt company" for allegedly crafting censorship systems tailored for the CCP, a claim Wynn-Williams first made in her unpublished memoir, "Careless People: A Cautionary Tale of Power, Greed, and Lost Idealism." The memoir reportedly detailed Meta's plans to build censorship tools, punish dissidents, and make American user data accessible to the CCP. Meta's gag order against Wynn-Williams has only fueled Hawley's determination to investigate.

In a fiery statement, Hawley noted, "Censorship is what Big Tech does best, and since Facebook is trying to quash her story, my subcommittee is going to officially investigate it." Wynn-Williams is set to testify "in public, under oath," and share explosive evidence outlined in her book.

The memoir, which garnered early praise and anticipation, was blocked from release after Meta won arbitration proceedings in March. Meta has refuted Wynn-Williams' allegations, calling her a "disgruntled employee" and citing nondisclosure agreements she signed during her tenure.

A spokesperson for Meta, Dani Lever, insisted the company does not currently operate in China, a decision CEO Mark Zuckerberg publicly announced in 2019. Lever admitted Meta had previously explored expansion in China but emphasized that this interest was widely reported at the time.

Despite Meta's denials, Senate Republicans are digging deeper into the company's dealings with China. Hawley and his colleagues have demanded all records and communications related to Meta’s operations within the country, including potential collaborations with the CCP on AI tools.

The subcommittee has received internal documents suggesting Facebook planned to partner with a Chinese company to develop censorship tools and provide user data to the CCP. Allegations even extend to censorship efforts targeting dissidents in the United States.

With Wynn-Williams' testimony looming, the GOP-led probe into Meta's practices is gaining momentum. For a company that once aimed to "connect the world," these revelations might instead highlight just how tangled Big Tech has become in geopolitics.