A consumer activist group is pushing for Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg to resign as the company's board chairman, The Washington Post reports.
The group SumOfUs has joined with four Facebook shareholders to advance a proposal that argues that the company's success depends on "a balance of power between the CEO and the board." They also argue that only a chairman who is independent of Facebook can take action without harming shareholders.
The proposal argues that the change would also help alleviate problems associated with the company's "perceived role in the promotion of misleading news; censorship, hate speech and alleged inconsistencies in the application of Facebook’s community standards guidelines and content policies; targeting of ad views based on race; collaboration with law enforcement and other government agencies; and calls for public accountability regarding the human rights impacts of Facebook's practices."
Facebook last year issued new, non-voting stock that allows Zuckerberg to give away 99 percent of his stock, as he has promised, without giving up control of the company. SumOfUs said that move was one area of concern it has.
Zuckerberg's holding of two positions as chairman and CEO tend to create a culture where board members defer to his thinking, SumOfUs capital markets adviser Lisa Lindsley told the Post.
"It's a symptom of a board that has capitulated to the CEO," Lindsley said. "Clearly, in this case, you have the directors looking to Zuckerberg as the only authority figure on the board."
Facebook did not comment on the proposal, the Post reported, but is expected to include it with other shareholder proposals in its proxy filing before its shareholder meeting later this year.
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