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Facebook has been facing enemies from all sides recently, with getting tangled in a political investigation, being bombarded with criticism by journalists, and Mark Zuckerberg’s detachment from the suffering of real people. While the social network mogul might claim his platform has brought people closer, his cartoon VR tour of Puerto Rico proves that he does not understand human suffering as much as he believes.
No matter Facebook’s original intentions with the VR tour of the devastated landscapes in the afflicted US territory, the social network’s service came off as tone-deaf. The tour featured an avatar of Zuckerberg as well as that of another Facebook executive, both of whom were making remarks that sounded cringe alarm bells, TechCrunch reports.
During the presentation, it seemed that the social media big shots were more impressed with its technology than sympathetic with the plight of Puerto Ricans. Saying things like “it’s crazy to feel like you’re in the middle of it” or Zuckerberg mentioning teleporting to California with millions stuck in the island came across as incredibly insensitive.
As CNET points out, the last thing that Puerto Ricans need right now is an unabashed example of a Silicon Valley billionaire showing off how clever he thinks he is, pushing their suffering towards the background. Facebook users who saw the presentation noted how awkward it was to see VR cartoons laughing while surrounded by so much misery.
It seems Zuckerberg is at least willing to recognize when he has done wrong, as he has since replied to comments disparaging such display of detachment.
“One of the most powerful features of VR is empathy. My goal here was to show how VR can raise awareness and help us see what’s happening in different parts of the world. I also wanted to share the news of our partnership with the Red Cross to help with the recovery. Reading some of the comments, I realize this wasn’t clear, and I’m sorry to anyone this offended,” the Facebook founder wrote.
