The irony of Mark Zuckerberg's $300M donation to protect elections

One of Zuckerberg's largest gifts ruffled some feathers ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ [View on the web]( [Recode]( [Click to view images]( [Mark Zuckerberg’s $300 million donation to protect elections must overcome Facebook’s past]( Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, are donating $300 million to protect American elections. The Facebook billionaire sent the money to two civic organizations, which will in turn direct it to state and local election officials so they can better prepare for Election Day. But some critics have been quick to point out that it's pretty ironic, given Facebook's history of failures when it comes to protecting the integrity of elections. Some say it's especially problematic for Zuckerberg to give away such a huge amount just 63 days before Election Day because local leaders might not know how to distribute the funds properly in time. Others simply note that Facebook has made untold sums helping spread misinformation about elections in recent years. Election officials, however, are thrilled; Michigan’s secretary of state called it a “game changer.” Recode's Teddy Schleifer covers the criticism and what this gift means in philanthropy circles. Correction: The September 1 newsletter misstated the price of Walmart+. It is $98 per year. [Click to view images]( [The new Apple-Google contact tracing tool finally seems useful]( Public health authorities won’t need to make their own apps in order to use Apple and Google’s exposure notification tool. [ Sara Morrison / [Recode]( ] [Click to view images]( [Amazon drivers are hanging smartphones in trees to get more work]( Someone seems to have rigged the Amazon system to get orders first. [ Spencer Soper / [Bloomberg]( ] [Click to view images]( [Facebook takes down Russian operation that recruited US journalists, amid rising concerns about election misinformation]( The social media giant acted against a small network of pages and accounts that directed users to a fake left-leaning news site called Peace Data. [ Elizabeth Dwoskin and Craig Timberg / [Washington Post]( ] [Click to view images]( [Twitter hack may have had another mastermind: a 16-year-old]( On Tuesday, federal agents served a Massachusetts teenager with a search warrant. He appears to have played a significant role in the July 15 Twitter attack, investigators and fellow hackers said. [ Nathaniel Popper / [New York Times]( ] [Click to view images]( [TikTok deal talks are snarled over fate of app’s algorithms]( The complexity of new Chinese export restrictions has reduced the chances of a sale occurring soon. [ Liza Lin, Aaron Tilley, and Georgia Wells / [Wall Street Journal]( ] [This is Cool Section Title] [Amazon's drone delivery service now has FAA approval.]( [Learn more about RevenueStripe...]( [Facebook]( Twitter [Instagram]( [Recode by Vox]( This email was sent to {EMAIL}. Manage your [email preferences](, or [unsubscribe]( to stop receiving emails from Vox Media. View our [Privacy Notice]( and our [Terms of Service](. Vox Media, 1201 Connecticut Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20036. Copyright © 2020. All rights reserved.