Hello everyone,

I just published this blog about what we prioritize at AllSides and I wanted to make sure you had the chance to read it.

I picked up Careless People by Sarah Wynn Williams because I wanted to understand why Facebook—arguably one of the most powerful companies in the world—seems so indifferent to its users. I already knew they weren’t doing enough to protect teenage girls from the dangers of their product, but I hadn’t fully grasped the extent of the harm. Williams paints a picture not just of negligence but of something more insidious—Facebook uses the same tactics as a scammer who ensnares you, traps you in their world, and extracts every last ounce of value from your presence.  

I had already gotten a taste of the carelessness when I started using Facebook’s ad platform last year. I was flabbergasted by how difficult it was to navigate, how painful the UI was, and how abysmal the customer service had become. It’s so bad that an entire cottage industry of consultants has sprung up just to help businesses use it effectively. But Williams’ book made me realize: it’s not just that the platform is difficult—it’s that the company itself operates with an alarming disregard for the impact of its decisions.  

One line in Careless People made me stop cold. Williams shares an anecdote about a Facebook engineer explaining how the company approaches new features:  

“Usually when Facebook releases new features, once the code is pushed, there is not a lot of thought put into the real-world consequences, but organ donation requires us to think through all the relevant rules and laws in every country.”  

I had to put the book down for a bit after that.  

This is Facebook, a company that shapes the way billions of people interact with the world, admitting that real-world consequences are typically an afterthought—unless the stakes are life and death. And even then, only sometimes.  

Building an Agile Company for Good  

I’m in the privileged position of helping steer AllSides forward. This year, we’re framing our priorities through the lens of credibility, customer, and conversion—in that order.  

One of my biggest takeaways from Careless People is that an organization, over time, becomes a direct reflection of its leadership. The longer those leaders remain in power, the more the company mirrors their mindset, biases, and blind spots. I’ve seen this play out in organizations I’ve been part of in the past, and once you accept this truth, decisions about whether to stay or leave the organization become much clearer.  

That realization also raises a crucial question: As the COO/CFO what kind of imprint am I, and all of our leadership team, leaving on AllSides?  We have already put some stakes in the ground.

1. Legal structure matters. That’s why we’re a Public Benefit Corporation—a structure that allows us to balance shareholder interests with our broader mission. Our goal isn’t just to succeed as a business; it’s to serve the public good.  

2. Credibility is paramount. Perception of credibility matters, but reality matters even more to us. That’s why we spent Q1 refining and strengthening our editorial standards across departments. As our audience grows, we take seriously the responsibility of ensuring the quality, fairness, and transparency of the content we put in front of them. We’re also revisiting our bias rating processes with a critical eye on rigor and consistency.  

But here’s the real test: if someone from inside the company (i.e. a Wynn-Williams) were to share their unfiltered thoughts on credibility—the good, the bad, and the ugly—what would they say? That is the reality. And that reality is what truly defines us, not just the fancy words put in marketing or policies on a piece of paper.  

3. Customer experience is a priority. If you’ve been a long-time AllSides user, you’ll notice improvements and upgrades that we think you will love. If you’re new, our goal is to create an experience so valuable that we receive even more emails from people saying, “Thank you for the work you do.”  

4. We practice what we preach. We have disagreements—sometimes major ones—but every day, I’m grateful for the opportunity to engage with people I respect who hold deeply different perspectives from my own. If we’re going to help society chart a better course, we have to live that philosophy internally.  

5. And yes, we are serious about conversion. Because even the most well-intentioned mission won’t succeed if we can’t sustain year-over-year revenue growth.  Subscriptions, client services and crowdfunding investments all help.

The Antidote to Careless Leadership  

Williams describes Facebook as “an astonishingly effective tool at turning people against each other.” It’s a sobering indictment of a platform that was originally designed to connect people. But the deeper problem isn’t just the technology—it’s the mindset of the people who run it.  

At AllSides, we don’t always get it right. But what I can promise is that we care—deeply—about the impact of our choices. Credibility, customer, conversion. In that order.  

Because carelessness isn’t just an oversight. It’s a choice. And so is the alternative.  

Thanks you for choosing to invest in the antidote instead of the poison.

— Alice