Comedian Will Ferrell has joined the small chorus of public figures signing off Facebook for good.
“I know I am not alone when I say that I was very disturbed to hear about Cambridge Analytica’s misuse of millions of Facebook users’ information in order to undermine our democracy and infringe on our citizens’ privacy,” Ferrell wrote in a Facebook post.
He said he’d leave the page live for 72 hours in order to let the post circulate. That puts Ferrell’s Facebook expiration date around 2 p.m. Friday.
“In this day and age, with misinformation running rampant, it’s important that we protect the truth, as well as those who work to bring it to light. I can no longer, in good conscience, use the services of a company that allowed the spread of propaganda and directly aimed it at those most vulnerable,” Ferrell said. (Facebook did not immediately respond to a request for comment.)
Facebook is still reeling from reports that research firm Cambridge Analytica improperly gained access to the personal information of more than 50 million Facebook users. The social media giant has in recent weeks lost billions in shareholder value and made several changes to its privacy policies.
CEO Mark Zuckerberg said last week he hadn’t seen a “meaningful number of people” deleting Facebook after the leak. Still, some public figures have abandoned the platform.
Billionaire tech entrepreneur Elon Musk said on Twitter he’d be deleting the Facebook pages for Tesla and SpaceX. Those pages have since disappeared.
Singer Cher tweeted that she too was deleting her Facebook account — a change she said was “very hard” because the platform has helped her with charitable efforts and because “there are amazing young people” on the site.
Here’s Ferrell’s full post:
Hi Friends,
I’m reaching out to let you know that in 72 hours I will be deleting my Facebook account. I am not deleting it immediately, in order to give this message enough time to get across to my fans and followers.
I have always had an aversion to social media and have primarily used it as a tool to help support our work at Funny Or Die, some of my personal projects, as well as charity causes that I am passionate about. Facebook allowed me to promote and share the work of many dedicated and talented individuals who deserved recognition.
I know I am not alone when I say that I was very disturbed to hear about Cambridge Analytica’s misuse of millions of Facebook users’ information in order to undermine our democracy and infringe on our citizens’ privacy. I was further appalled to learn that Facebook’s reaction to such a violation was to suspend the account of the Cambridge Analytica whistleblower.
In this day and age, with misinformation running rampant, it’s important that we protect the truth, as well as those who work to bring it to light. I can no longer, in good conscience, use the services of a company that allowed the spread of propaganda and directly aimed it at those most vulnerable.
I love my fans and hope to further interact with them through my comedy via the mediums of film and television.
-Will Ferrell
