Frances Haugen is a data scientist and former product manager on Facebook’s civic misinformation team, also called the civic integrity team.
In 2021, Haugen became known as the “Facebook whistleblower” when she leaked tens of thousands of internal Facebook documents to reporters and lawmakers.
She testified at a Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Consumer Protection that Facebook’s algorithm prioritizes divisive and extremist posts, and she advocated for governmental regulation and stronger oversight.
Haugen told The Hollywood Reporter that she didn’t get a chance to meet Mikey Madison, who won the 2025 best actress Oscar for “Anora,” before Madison stepped into the whistleblower role for “The Social Reckoning.”
“She was extremely busy that year because she’d won the Oscar just a few months before,” Haugen said.
Still, Haugen said she hopes that Zuckerberg will watch the film.
“When I sat there for two hours and watched it, I was like, ‘Wow, this is a thing that has really impacted the course of my life, and I have done a wonderful job of being in denial about that,'” Haugen said. “I hope if Mark watches the movie, he has the same experience.”
“He should be reminded that, hey, you are making choices,” she continued. “You don’t have to be the head of Meta forever. You don’t have to play this role in society.”