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Craziest moments in congress grilling of Mark Zuckerberg

FROM the Facebook CEO’s unsettling robotic demeanour to octogenarian politicians struggling to understand the interweb, Zuckerberg’s testimony was a meme fest.

Marnie O'NeillMarnie O'Neill
@marnieoneill7
2 min read
April 11, 2018 - 11:52PM
Mark Zuckerberg’s Five Hour Face-Off With Congress in Five Minutes

FROM Mark Zuckerberg’s unsettling robotic demeanour to octogenarian politicians struggling to understand the interweb, the Facebook CEO’s awkward congress grilling was a meme fest.

The social media mogul was interrogated by 44 senators allocated roughly five minutes each and it made for a pretty intense five hours.

A lot of people were shocked by how many senators came unprepared and/or uninformed, making Zuckerberg’s ride a lot smoother than it should have been.

Political journalist Brian Beutler summed up the situation with a tweet that resonated with other users:

“We’re about an hour in and Zuckerberg seems to realise he has the edge now, because these dinosaurs don’t know what the f*ck they’re doing or what they’re supposed to be after,” he wrote.

Anyway, here are the weirdest talking points from the hearing and the internet’s reaction to them.

MARK ZUCKERBERG’S POKER FACE

It probably began as an attempt by observers to read his expressions for signs of nervousness or distress, but it ended up with many people concluding that Zuckerberg may not be 100 per cent human.

ZUCKERBERG’S HAIR STYLE

Many observers asked why, with all of his billions, Zuckerberg is still walking around with the bowl cut his mum gave him as an eight-year-old.

ZUCKERBERG’S AWKWARD SMILE

This moment came when Senator Orrin Hatch, 84, used his five minutes to reveal he had in fact done no research whatsoever before entering the hearing.

Senator Hatch: “How do you sustain a business model in which users don’t pay for your service?”

Zuckerberg: “Senator, we run ads.” (Cue awkward smile)

Senator Hatch: “I see. That’s great.”

One good thing came out of this exchange — the smile slide gif.

EVERY TIME A SENATOR ASKED WHAT FACEBOOK WAS

Facepalm moments included when Senator Lindsey Graham asked Zuckerberg if Facebook had a monopoly followed by: “Is Twitter the same as what you do?”; when Senator Roger Wicker revealed he had no understanding of “cookies” and when Senator Chuck Grassley asked if a floppy disk magazine giveaway was “the same as Facebook”.

WHEN ZUCKERBERG LAUGHED ABOUT PRIVACY

Ironically, it was analogy about violation of privacy that gave the Facebook chief a bit of a laugh, albeit a stilted one.

Senator Durbin: “Mr Zuckerberg, would you be comfortable sharing with us the name of the hotel you stayed in last night?

Zuckerberg: “Uh, no.” (Cue uneasy chuckle)

Senator Durbin: “If you messaged anybody this week would you share with us the names of the people you messaged?”

Zuckerberg: “Senator, no, I would probably not choose to do that publicly here.”

Senator Durbin: “I think that maybe what this is all about.”

THE DORM ROOM REFERENCES

Zuckerberg made multiple mentions of Facebook’s humble beginnings in his university bedroom, which cynics interpreted as a tactic to replace fears of sinister motives with a narrative about being young, naive and full of dreams.

THE BOOSTER SEAT

Zuckerberg has been trolled relentlessly about the extra padding on his seat but again the sceptical claim it’s just another way of making Zuckerberg appear more childlike, more vulnerable and, well, less evil.

So even when people joked about him trying to “look like a big boy” it gave the impression he was a little boy.

AND FINALLY, THIS PERSON

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Original URL: https://www.news.com.au/technology/online/security/craziest-moments-in-senate-grilling-of-mark-zuckerberg/news-story/b8df76b4e9b67c0becaa8999ead3e5fa