Flatiron Books, the publisher of a new book by an ex-Meta staffer alleging misconduct and harassment at the company, says in a statement that a recent arbitration order demanding that the book no longer be published has “no impact” on Macmillan.
The ruling instructs Sarah Wynn-Williams, the author of Careless People: A Cautionary Tale of Power, Greed, and Lost Idealism, to stop making “disparaging” remarks against Meta and, where possible, cease promoting or publishing the book. Meta appears to have been able to bring the case to arbitration because of an agreement Wynn-Williams signed when she left the company in 2017.
“We are appalled by Meta’s tactics to silence our author through the use of a non-disparagement clause in a severance agreement,” a spokesperson at Macmillan, the parent company of Flatiron Books, says in a statement to The New York Times. “To be clear, the arbitrator’s order makes no reference to the claims within Careless People. The book went through a thorough editing and vetting process, and we remain committed to publishing important books such as this. We will absolutely continue to support and promote it.”
Meta didn’t immediately reply to a request for comment.
