WIRED's Top Stories in February: Facebook, Facebook, Facebook

March 20, 2019 Off By HotelSalesCareers

When special counsel Robert Mueller dropped his bombshell 37-page indictment earlier this month, there was one undeniable takeaway: Russians used information warfare to meddle in and influence the US election. And one of their favorite weapons was Facebook.

Since the 2016 election, social media platforms have come under intense media scrutiny, Facebook more than most. It's been a tumultuous two years for the company, as outlined by WIRED's editor in chief, Nicholas Thompson, and contributing writer Fred Vogelstein, who spoke to 51 current or former Facebook employees to stitch together a comprehensive history of the past 24 months. Reading the story, it's truly staggering to absorb just how much has happened in a relatively short amount of time.

Until, that is, you realize just how much news the company has made in just the past two weeks. Five days after WIRED published Thompson and Vogelstein's story, Mueller's indictment hit, prompting Rob Goldman, an executive at the company, to sound off (on Twitter) about Russia's use of the platform. Goldman's tweetstorm caught the attention of President Trump, who then used the exec's words to argue against the assertion that Russia influenced the election. (Goldman ended up apologizing to the company.) A week after the indictment, WIRED contributor Antonio Garcia Martinez, a former product manager for Facebook's internal ad program Custom Audiences, explained how Facebook's ad auctions work and how Trump's campaign was just better at utilizing the platform's capabilities. Brad Parscale, the digital director of Trump's 2016 campaign (and freshly announced 2020 campaign director), weighed in, calling the president "the perfect candidate for Facebook." This led Andrew Bosworth, another Facebook executive, to release a chart (also on Twitter) showing how much each campaign paid during the campaign—though, as WIRED senior writer Issie Lapowsky points out, it's more complicated than the chart would have us believe.

Again, this all happened in just two weeks. But while Facebook dominated much of February's news cycle, WIRED covered much more. Below, 10 of the most-read stories of the month.

Inside Facebook's Hellish Two Years—and Mark Zuckerberg's Struggle to Fix it All

How a confused, defensive social media giant steered itself into a disaster, and how Mark Zuckerberg is trying to fix it all. —Nicholas Thompson and Fred Vogelstein

Robert Mueller’s Investigation Is Larger—and Further Along—Than You Think

The Mueller investigation is picking up steam—and homing in on a series of targets. —Garrett M. Graff

Pro-Gun Russian Bots Flood Twitter After Parkland Shooting

In the wake of the Parkland, Florida school shooting Russian bots took to Twitter to stoke the gun control debate. —Erin Griffith

Winter Olympics 2018: Inside the Opening Ceremony's Drone Show

The Pyeongchang opening ceremony included a performance by 1,218 drones working in concert—a new world record. —Brian Barrett

Facebook Executive Rob Goldman Apologizes After Russia Tweets

When Facebook ad executive Rob Goldman sounded off about Russia's use of the platform, he went against the company line—and Robert Mueller's indictment. —Nicholas Thompson

The Chrome Extensions the WIRED Staff Can't Live Without

If you're not loaded up on these extensions for Google Chrome, you're not living your best online life. —WIRED Staff

Airlines Won’t Dare Use the Fastest Way to Board Planes

United's latest experiment with the boarding procedure could make things better—but it's no revolution. —Alex Davies

The Google Chrome Ad Blocker Has Already Changed the Web

Google started blocking the web's worst ads in Chrome on Thursday. Here's what it means for you. —Klint Finley

The Final, Terrible Voyage of the Nautilus

Kim Wall went for a ride on a submarine, hoping to write a story about a maker of "extreme machines." She never did. Here's what happened. —May Jeong

Watch a Human Try to Fight Off Boston Dynamics' Door-Opening Robot Dog

A human with a hockey stick does everything in his power to stop a robot from opening a door. —Matt Simon