Facebook Friends D.C.

Over the past few years the relationship between Facebook and politicians and policy makers in Washington has grown increasingly cozier. President Obama's current trip out west, which included a town-hall-style meeting at Facebook's headquarters in Palo Alto, is an indication of this. Not only is Facebook drawing visits from the President, but it is also drawing top political and legal talent of administrations past. Facebook's current chief operating officer, Sheryl Sandberg, is a former Clinton administration official, and a former clerk for Justice Antonin Scalia, Ted Ullyot, is Facebook's general counsel. Currently, there are rumors about Robert Gibbs joining Facebook's communications team. It's no secret that Facebook is trying to develop better relationships with Washington in the case that those relationships might be useful in future legal and policy battles over privacy issues.

While concerns over privacy and access to individuals' information are crucial, there are interesting advantages in the relationship between Facebook and politicians that go beyond money and campaign donations. Politicians now rely on social media, particularly Facebook, to engage voters and get potential supporters involved. So, not only do Zuckerberg and Facebook benefit from cultivating strong relationships with policy makers to avoid legal battles, but politicians and policy makers also have an interest in using the information about individuals that Facebook provides to further their own campaigns and support. When a Facebook user gives a campaign access to their account a campaign can then get information about a person's email address, hometown, and access to their personal network of friends.

The possible effects of Facebook's relationship with D.C. policy makers are difficult to parse out and not currently known. Facebook connects users to friends and personal interests, and with this comes a lot of information as well as a lot of power, which D.C. would most likely love to be privy to. As the relationship between the two centers of power--tech and government--grows stronger, it will be important to watch and monitor. It will be interesting to see what role, if any, both social media and traditional media play in checking this relationship.