Zuckerberg phones Obama to complain

Zuckerberg phones Obama to complain

“I’ve called President Obama to express my frustration over the damage the government is creating for all of our future,” Zuckerberg wrote in a note he posted to Facebook today.

A White House spokeswoman confirmed that Zuckerberg and Obama spoke last night, discussing “recent reports in the press about alleged activities by the U.S. intelligence community”.

It seems, however, that Facebook’s CEO and founder did not get what he wanted. “The U.S. government should be the champion for the internet, not a threat. They need to be much more transparent about what they’re doing, or otherwise people will believe the worst,” Zuckerberg wrote and added that, unfortunately, “it seems like it will take a very long time for true full reform.”

Things were once better between Zuckerberg and Obama. Just over two years ago, Facebook hosted a town hall meeting where the friendly discussion revolved around the economy. Back then, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission’s scrutiny of Facebook’s privacy policies was the topic most likely to come up in a private conversation. Since then, the tables have turned, and Zuckerberg is now the guy worried about privacy.

Zuckerberg is just one of the many people across Silicon Valley who are concerned about the future of the internet now that ex-NSA contractor Edward Snowden has revealed the extent of the agency’s surveillance programs.

Technology companies, including Google Inc. and Microsoft Corp., have been increasingly vocal about frustrations over the U.S. government’s spying programs.

Last month, top executives from the companies, along with others from Yahoo, Twitter, AOL and LinkedIn, called for changes that would include a government agreement not to collect bulk data from internet communications.