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Watch Zuckerberg testify before Congress, day 1

Watch Zuckerberg testify before Congress, day 1

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Today, Mark Zuckerberg will testify in the first of two widely anticipated hearings before Congress. The first hearing, scheduled for later today at 2:15PM ET, will take place before a joint session of the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee.

This isn’t the first time Facebook has been forced to testify about the vulnerabilities of its platform before Congress: in October, Facebook, along with Google and Twitter, were asked to account for how their networks were used by foreign agents to influence the 2016 election. Zuckerberg was spared from the grilling, though, and Facebook got away with simply sending the company’s top lawyer to DC.

“I’m glad Mr. Zuckerberg has agreed to face the music.” 

But the last six months have not been kind to Facebook. The data-sharing scandal surrounding how users’ data ended up in the hands of Cambridge Analytica unleashed serious concerns about the platform’s seemingly unchecked powers and influence across society, leading to a #deletefacebook campaign and even calls by investors for Zuckerberg to step down as the company’s chairman. This time, the invitation to testify before Congress was one Zuckerberg seemingly couldn’t refuse.

Ahead of the hearings, members hinted that Zuckerberg should expect a hard line of questioning over the next two days. “I’m glad Mr. Zuckerberg has agreed to face the music. His company has shamelessly shredded the privacy rights of its users,” wrote Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) in a statement. Blumenthal sits on the Judiciary and Commerce committees, which will lead Tuesday’s questioning. “This hearing is a good first step towards instituting some vitally necessary rules of the road for Big Tech.”

HOW TO FOLLOW ALONG

Start time: 2:15PM ET / 11:15AM PT

Live stream: We’ve set up a Facebook Live stream, which you’ll be able to watch on this page starting 10 minutes before the beginning of the hearing.

Live blog: Tune into The Verge’s live blog for a stream of the event and up-to-the-second commentary from Casey Newton and Colin Lecher.

Due to constraints of the Facebook Live platform, the stream continues here: