In addition to being an entrepreneur and former community organizer, I am an advocate for more transparency on social media. 

I was formerly the CEO and Co-Founder of CrowdTangle, a social analytics tool that was acquired by Facebook in 2016. I left Meta in 2020 over an internal disagreement about how transparent the company should be about what’s happening on its platform (some of which was covered publicly in a variety of outlets). 

These days, I speak frequently about the role that transparency can play in helping build a better internet. I have testified in the US Senate, as well as Australian Parliament, and regularly advise a wide ranging group of NGOs, non-profits and platforms on social media & data sharing. 

Some of my current affiliations include:

• Knight Fellow at George Washington University’s Institute for Data, Democracy & Politics,
• Affiliate with Harvard’s Berkman Klein Center,
• Tech Advisory Council at the California Institute for Technology and Democracy, 
• Founding Fellow at the Integrity Institute,
• Product Advisory Council for New_Public,
• Member of the U.S. Speaker Bureau,
• Founding member of the Coalition for Independent Tech Research.

I’m also an active investor and advisor in a variety of start-ups, especially around local news, new models for funding journalism & decarbonization. 

 

Prior to CrowdTangle, I helped start a non-profit focused on leadership development and training. I graduated Swarthmore College where I majored in Philosophy and Studio Art. I’ve lived in Philadelphia & Baltimore but these days, reside in Oakland with my partner and three kids and am increasingly becoming a Pokemon expert.