On March 12, Meta Platforms secured an emergency arbitration ruling to temporarily halt the promotion of the tell-all book "Careless People" by its former employee, Sarah Wynn-Williams. Described by the New York Times book review as "an ugly, detailed portrait of one of the most powerful companies in the world," the book scrutinizes top Meta executives including CEO Mark Zuckerberg, former COO Sheryl Sandberg, and Chief Global Affairs Officer Joel Kaplan.
The American Arbitration Association's emergency arbitrator, Nicholas Gowen, stated that Meta would face "immediate and irreparable loss" without the ruling. Although Wynn-Williams did not attend the hearing, Macmillan, the book publisher, argued that it was not obligated by the arbitration agreement originating from a severance agreement between the employee and the company.
The ruling mandates that Wynn-Williams cease promoting the book and, where possible, prevent its further publication. It did not prescribe any actions for the publisher.
Meta spokesperson Andy Stone emphasized on Threads, "This ruling confirms that Sarah Wynn-Williams' false and defamatory book should never have been published."
Neither Wynn-Williams nor Macmillan responded immediately to Reuters' request for comments on the ruling.