Court Documents Reveal Meta's 'Whisper Strategy' to Discredit Social Media Critic Jonathan Haidt — Big Tech and the digital economy

Internal meeting minutes obtained through US litigation show that Meta employees discussed a covert campaign aimed at undermining the credibility of social psychologist Jonathan Haidt, whose research has influenced global calls for stricter social media regulations.

Court documents have revealed that staff at Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, discussed deploying a "whisper strategy" to discredit influential US academic Jonathan Haidt. The internal communications suggest an effort to turn the academic community against Haidt, whose work has been instrumental in driving global debates toward stricter online safety measures, including Australia's ban on social media for users under 16.

The details emerged from a document titled "Well-being Meeting Sound-check Notes," which outlines plans to "get the academic community to disavow Haidt." The minutes describe the approach not as a public confrontation but as a "below-the-line campaign" designed to make the media view Haidt as non-credible. One entry dated March 8, 2023, references Curtiss Cobb, then Meta's vice-president of research, stating his goal was to figure out how to enrage academics against Haidt since they could not be co-opted.

The documents also mention a suggestion to have an individual referred to as "Gellman" write a "takedown piece." While the document does not identify this person, Andrew Gelman, a professor at Columbia University known for criticizing Haidt's work, addressed the matter in a recent blog post. Gelman stated he was never hired by Facebook to attack Haidt, though he acknowledged receiving funding from Mark Zuckerberg's company on a no-strings basis in the past without being asked to investigate social media's impact on teen health.

Haidt is the author of The Anxious Generation, published in 2024, which argues that widespread smartphone use has triggered a mental health crisis among young people. His advocacy has led to calls for banning smartphones in schools and restricting social media access for minors. Earlier this year, UK Health Secretary Wes Streeting invited Haidt to brief officials on the possibility of an under-16 ban in Britain.

The meeting minutes predate the publication of Haidt's book and appear to be a response to a Substack post where he reviewed various articles. It remains unclear whether Meta executed the strategies outlined in these notes. In a statement to The Verge, Haidt said he was not surprised by the revelations, noting that when companies cannot dispute evidence, they often target the messenger instead. Meta has been approached for comment regarding the documents.

Sources: The Guardian Technology.