Let's recap a few things that have happened in the last couple of weeks with Facebook.
At the f8 developer's conference, Facebook told its users what they think about privacy, proclaiming a new age of openness and the default sharing of information previously restricted to a user's trusted network.
Pronouncements aren't conversation.
Unsurprisingly, people were offended -- starting with the early adopters and the influencers. Mainstream media jumped in the fray. They attempted to restart the conversation via an increasingly passionate stream of blog posts, tweets, and posts on Facebook itself. If you search for Facebook and select blogs, you will see what I mean.
Facebook didn't respond. No conversation.
Other parties attempted to speak up, including the mainstream media, privacy advocates, and congressmen. Facebook responded by talking past its users, issuing a string of security improvements -- but nothing related to privacy. At this point it looks like we're Facebook's product, not its customers.
Still no conversation.
Facebook calls an "all hands" Thursday staff meeting to field questions about privacy. Ironically, the meeting is held in secret. After the meeting, a terse email announces that the meeting had taken place. There are no details, no announcements, and nothing for end-users. European data protection authorities blast Facebook.
Still no conversation.