Part of his preparedness for the Senate hearing, where he managed to repeat several core phrases that the company has been perpetuating in the media, came as a result of Facebook’s information bombardment over the past month. Some of the company’s obvious talking points have been repeated throughout the past weeks, such as how sorry Zuckerberg is (an apology also appeared in full-page newspaper ads in the U.S. and the U.K.), how much control Facebook users actually do have over their own data, how Facebook is trying to build a positive community and constant reminders of how the company started in a Harvard University dorm when he was 19.
According to the New York Times, Facebook hired a team of experts to give Zuckerberg — who can be combative and defensive — a crash course in humility and charm ahead of the hearing in sessions that included mock hearings with its communications team and outside advisers. That preparation paid off: After the first two hours of questions were nearing an end and there was a call for a potential break, Zuckerberg took a sip of water and said he could keep going for a bit longer.
That break came just after trading ended, with Facebook stock noticeably jumping as the hearing went on and gaining 4.5% to its highest closing price since March 21, adding more than $20 billion back to its damaged market cap and increasing Zuckerberg’s net worth by about $3 billion. Still, Facebook stock is down 6.5% this year, while the S&P 500 index SPX, +0.98% has declined 0.6%. – READ MORE
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