Mark Zuckerberg didn’t answer a lot of EU leaders’ questions

ReutersTV | Reuters

Facebook’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg answers questions about the improper use of millions of users’ data by a political consultancy, at the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium, in this still image taken from Reuters TV May 22, 2018

Mark Zuckerberg failed to answer a lot of questions from members of the European Parliament Tuesday — largely due to time constraints and a bizarre meeting format that let the Facebook founder and CEO peddle talking points.

“I mean I asked you six yes-and-no questions. I got not a single answer,” Belgian European Parliament member Philippe Lamberts said at the conclusion of the meeting.

Zuckerberg met with European Union leaders for his third appearance before regulators to address Facebook’s Cambridge Analytica scandal. EU officials, who have historically been tougher on Silicon Valley and more concerned about privacy, pitched tough questions on shadow profiles, data tracking and Facebook’s market power.

Members of the European Parliament asked questions in bulk for the first 60-plus minutes while Zuckerberg took notes. He began addressing all the questions at once with just 7 minutes remaining in the allotted time.

One questioner asked about data sharing between Facebook and its secure messaging app, WhatsApp, and how the recently passed GDPR data regulations would affect them.

“I think it’s a very important question this round,” Jan Philipp Albrecht of Germany said after Zuckerberg failed to address the question. “It would be good if you say at least one word to that.”

Zuckerberg acknowledged the time limitations and attempted to close the meeting about 15 minutes after it was scheduled to end — to the clear exasperation of several EU officials.

“There were a lot of specific questions that I didn’t get to specifically answer,” Zuckerberg acknowledged as the meeting broke up. “I think I was able to address the high-level areas.”

A Facebook representative was not immediately available to comment on the meeting format after its conclusion.

Tuesday’s meeting comes after Zuckerberg spent 10 grueling hours before the U.S. Congress last month during which Zuckerberg devoted time to the fundamentals of online advertising and basic functionality of Facebook’s platforms.

The international probes were spurred by reports that British research firm Cambridge Analytica improperly gained access to the sensitive information of as many as 87 million Facebook users. The data leak has resurfaced earlier concerns around abuse of the platform, particularly around foreign meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election and the Brexit vote in the U.K.