Mark Zuckerberg's reputation has gone downhill over the past few months. But it's not just because Facebook has become a handy way to spread propaganda, or that Zuckerberg made a historic flub when discussing how Holocaust deniers use the platform.
It's also because of that blasted Aaron Sorkin movie from 2010, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg tells The New Yorker.
Eight years after Jesse Eisenberg portrayed Zuckerberg as a sleazy college student turned irresponsible billionaire in The Social Network, Facebook executives still scoff when they refer to "the movie," The New Yorker reports. Sandberg calls it an "unfair picture" that still "forms the basis of what people believe about Mark."
After all, Zuckerberg has come a long way from the young executive who yelled "Domination!" at the end of every staff meeting. He purchased Instagram. He's testified in front of Congress. He had a daughter and named her August, after his favorite ruthless Roman emperor Augustus Caesar. Zuckerberg loves the ancient conquerer because "through a really harsh approach, he established 200 years of world peace," he tells The New Yorker.
That same philosophy describes how Zuckerberg has handled "problem after problem after problem" over the last year, he tells The New Yorker. He rejects "impulsive, emotional decisions," even if that means drawing some serious flack along the way. Read more about Zuckerberg's transformation at The New Yorker.