Manager Facebook insults 1 billion Indians. Zuckerberg: 'It is disconcerting'

It has certainly surprised that Marc Andreessen, one of the most important venture capitalists in Silicon Valley and a member of Facebook's board of directors, has received with pleasure the news of the Basics of Free block in India. The nation has appealed to net neutrality, forbidding the introduction of the Facebook internet service in India because local laws prevent to pay to the internet service based on content offered inside.

While it is not surprising the disappointment of Andreessen, who momentarily lost the ability to penetrate a market of 1.3 billion heads, in contrast scandalized his reaction, naively published on Twitter. The original message recited literally: "The anti-colonialism has been economically catastrophic for the Indian people for decades. So why stop now?". After reasonable excuses, the post was later deleted by the same Andreessen.

The audience of the social network did not appreciate the irony and, above all, the post sparked the Facebook media machine, whose communications department has started to send out press right and left in the US: "Of course we do not agree with comments Mr. Andreessen, or those who support them, and we are pleased that it is readily excused, "said a company spokesman. USA Today was however informed that "Facebook strongly rejected by the sentiments expressed by Marc Andreessen on India".

We recall that India was under the control of the British for 200 years. The economic catastrophe that Andreessen refers relates to the 30 years following the obtaining of independence, it won in 1947, when the growth rate was extremely low because of market policies. A vision that can not be transposed to India today, and that in any case should be thorough and not singled out in a boorish manner as done in public artlessly by Andreessen.

The message hit so deeply Facebook (and probably his strategy) that forced its CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, to take the field with a public statement released on social networks. Facebook's mission is to connect the world without distinction, and it is precisely for this reason that the company can not afford blunders so despicable by its main exponents: "I found the comments of Mark Andreessen deeply disconcerting," wrote Zuckerberg . "They do not represent at all the way we think, and neither I nor Facebook".

Below the note in full, as published on Facebook.


https://www.facebook.com/zuck/posts/10102645335962321

I want to respond to Marc Andreessen's comments about India yesterday. I found the comments deeply upsetting, and they do not represent the way Facebook or I think at all.

India has been personally important to me and Facebook. Early on in my thinking about our mission, I traveled to India and was inspired by the humanity, spirit and values of the people. It solidified my understanding that when all people have the power to share their experiences, the entire world will make progress.

Facebook stands for helping to connect people and giving them voice to shape their own future. But to shape the future we need to understand the past. As our community in India has grown, I've gained a deeper appreciation for the need to understand India's history and culture. I've been inspired by how much progress India has made in building a strong nation and the largest democracy in the world, and I look forward to strengthening my connection to the country.