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Facebook’s chief executive has denied claims that the company prioritises profit over the safety of its users.

Mark Zuckerberg was responding to Frances Haugen’s claims that, left alone, Facebook would “continue to make choices that go against the common good – our common good”.

Ms Haugen – a former product manager at the tech giant – gave evidence to US politicians in the Senate on Tuesday, days after leaking internal company documents to The Wall Street Journal.

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‘Facebook buys its profits with our safety’

Mr Zuckerberg wrote in a blog on Tuesday night that the testimony “just doesn’t reflect the company we know”, adding: “We care deeply about issues like safety, well-being and mental health.

“It’s difficult to see coverage that misrepresents our work and our motives.”

Documents leaked by Ms Haugen included an internal study that suggested Instagram generated peer pressure, leading to mental health and body image problems among young girls, including eating disorders and suicidal thoughts.

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In one report, 13.5% of teenage girls said Instagram increased suicidal thoughts, and 17% said it made eating disorders worse.

During her testimony, Ms Haugen accused Facebook of “hiding its research from public scrutiny”, meaning it was “unaccountable”.

She added: “When we realised Big Tobacco was hiding the harms, that caused the government to take action. When we figured out cars were safer with seatbelts, the government took action.

“And when our government learned that opioids were taking lives, the government took action.”

The whistleblower had revealed her identity in an interview with the 60 Minutes programme on CBS, where she claimed Facebook prematurely turned off safeguards designed to combat misinformation that contributed to the US Capitol attack.

She said the changes made to algorithms contributed to more divisiveness, but that Facebook discovered they helped keep people coming back, helping the tech giant sell more digital ads – the lion’s share of its revenue.

Mr Zuckerberg responded: “We make money from ads, and advertisers consistently tell us they don’t want their ads next to harmful or angry content.

“And I don’t know any tech company that sets out to build products that make people angry or depressed.

“The moral, business and product incentives all point in the opposite direction.”

FILE - This Jan. 17, 2017, file photo shows a Facebook logo displayed in a start-up companies gathering at Paris' Station F in Paris. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg will meet Friday May 10, 2019 French President Emmanuel Macron as the tech giant and France try to pioneer ways of fighting hate speech and violent extremism online. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus, File)
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Facebook also owns WhatsApp and Instagram

Mr Zuckerberg said that many of Ms Haugen’s claims “don’t make any sense”.

He added: “If we wanted to hide our results, why would we have established an industry-leading standard for transparency and reporting on what we’re doing?

“And if social media were as responsible for polarising society as some people claim, then why are we seeing polarisation increase in the US while it stays flat or declines in many countries with just as heavy use of social media around the world?

“At the heart of these accusations is this idea that we prioritise profit over safety and well-being. That’s just not true.”

After Ms Haugen’s testimony, some senators personally extended an invitation for Mr Zuckerberg to testify in front of the committee, while others accused him of going sailing instead of facing his responsibilities.

Her testimony came after Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp suffered an unprecedented outage for almost six hours on Monday – leaving its 3.5 billion users unable to access services.

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US election: Millions of Americans vote to decide between Trump and Harris

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US election: Millions of Americans vote to decide between Trump and Harris

Millions of Americans are voting in an historic election that could put Donald Trump back into the White House or make Kamala Harris the first woman to become US president.

The two candidates are neck and neck in the polls after bitter campaign that saw two assassination attempts against Republican Mr Trump as well as the shock withdrawal of President Joe Biden.

In around 100 days, Ms Harris has found her feet and mounted a fierce challenge to her opponent.

With just hours left before polls close, the election has come down to the wire and could be decided by a handful of crucial battleground states.

Follow live: Harris makes surprise stop in Washington

Voting on Tuesday appears to be smooth, with only scattered reports of delays from extreme weather, long lines or technical problems.

The FBI reported that there had been “non-credible” bomb threats to several states, some of which it said came from Russian email domains.

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Pic: AP
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Pic: AP

How the vote works

As well as those lining up at polling booths on Tuesday, tens of millions of Americans cast early ballots – voting by post or in person before today.

To become president, the winning candidate needs 270 electoral votes or more, with each state carrying a different number of votes.

If the polls predicting a close race are correct, the election will likely come down to a few battleground states: Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

The first ballots cast on Tuesday mirrored the national divide. Overnight, the six registered voters in the tiny hamlet of Dixville Notch, New Hampshire, split their votes between the two candidates in voting just past midnight.

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Key issues for American voters

Read more:
An easy guide to the US election
What Trump or Harris victories would mean for UK

Trump or Harris

Former President Mr Trump, 78, voted in Palm Beach, Florida, near his Mar-a-Lago club.

Wearing his trademark red “Make America Great Again” baseball cap, he said at the polling station that he was feeling “very confident”.

“I hear we’re doing very well,” he said. “It looks like Republicans have shown up in force.”

Elon Musk, the world’s richest man and Trump donor, said he will watch results unfold with the former president.

In the meantime, Ms Harris, the 60-year-old Democratic vice president, did radio interviews in the battleground states of Pennsylvania, Georgia and North Carolina.

Melissa Fehl votes, next to a cat named "Skye", in the 2024 U.S. presidential election on Election Day, at the Mattress Factory in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S., November 5, 2024. REUTERS/Quinn Glabicki
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A cat seen at a polling booth in battleground state Pennsylvania. Pic: Reuters

What do the polls say?

Many polls are too tight to call and, with a large margin of error, most experts are refusing to predict the outcome.

Georgia could be among the first battleground to declare, with polls there closing at 7pm local time (midnight UK time). State election officials told Sky News they could have a result as early as 10pm (3am UK time).

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North Carolina could also give an early indication of how the vote is going.

Even so, it could be several days before the US has a definitive result.

An exit poll by conducted today by Sky News’ sister outlet NBC News and other US outlets suggests that democracy is the top issue on the minds of voters as they cast their ballots.

Some 35% of people said it was their most important issue, closely followed by the economy on 31% and with abortion ranked third at 14%.

Voters are not just selecting a president. A number of seats in the House of Representatives and the Senate are up for grabs. In addition, 10 states will hold abortion-related ballots, half of which would overturn existing restrictions.

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US election: Who will win the battleground states? Play our game and decide the new president

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US election: Who will win the battleground states? Play our game and decide the new president

Americans are choosing their new president today.

Either Kamala Harris or Donald Trump will be the new occupant of the White House in January.

For many people, their vote will make little difference.

The main crunch points are in seven states and one inner state district.

In the following game, you can predict who will win in each swing state.

We will tell you at the end who the new president will be – if you have made correct predictions.

Good luck!

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Trump or Harris? Millions of Americans set to decide next president

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Trump or Harris? Millions of Americans set to decide next president

Voters across 50 states are preparing to cast their ballots after a bitterly contested US election campaign, which will see Donald Trump or Kamala Harris become president.

In the last few hours, both candidates have been giving their final pitches. “The momentum is on our side,” Ms Harris told a crowd in Philadelphia that chanted back, “We will win”.

“Tonight, then, we finish as we started: with optimism, with energy, with joy,” she said, while enjoying the support of celebrity endorsements on the day from Katy Perry, Lady Gaga and Jon Bon Jovi.

US election latest updates

In contrast, Mr Trump ended his campaign in Michigan, repeating key messages about the economy and immigration.

A handful of states will play a crucial role in determining the outcome of the election. Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin hold the keys to the White House.

To become president, the winning candidate needs 270 electoral votes or more, with each state carrying a different number of votes.

More on Us Election 2024

But the focus has been on Pennsylvania which carries 19 electoral votes, the most of all the swing states.

It has been a remarkable journey for both candidates – with Mr Trump surviving two assassination attempts and Ms Harris not even originally in the running.

Katy Perry performs after an appearance by Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris at a campaign rally at the Carrie Blast Furnaces in Pittsburgh, Monday, Nov. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
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Katy Perry performed in Pittsburgh in support of Kamala Harris. Pic: AP

For more than a year, the 2024 presidential race seemed destined for a rematch between Joe Biden and Mr Trump – but a disastrous TV debate by Mr Biden eventually forced him to withdraw from the ticket.

The Democratic party’s decision to replace Mr Biden with his vice president transformed the race and shifted polls in Ms Harris’s favour. But only just.

Many polls are too tight to call and, with a large margin of error, most experts are refusing to predict the outcome.

Read more:
Overseas ballots face legal challenge

You decide the new president
Should we fear Trumponomics?

Later, attention will turn to those battleground states including Georgia, which is among the first polls to close at 7pm local time (midnight UK time).

State election officials told Sky News they could have a result as early as 10pm (3am UK time).

Even so, it could be several days before the US has a definitive result.

Voters are not just selecting a president. In addition, 10 states will hold abortion-related ballots, half of which would overturn existing restrictions.

Predict who you think will win in each swing state and we’ll tell you who the president will be if you’re right.

Tonight, Sky News will have access to the most comprehensive exit poll and vote-counting results from every state, county and demographic across America through its US-partner network NBC.

You can find out more about Sky News’ coverage here.

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