Who is Dr. Joan Donovan? Former Harvard disinformation scholar claims she was fired from her job for criticizing Facebook 

Dr. Joan Donovan, a former Harvard disinformation scholar, has now alleged that she was fired by the university after she criticized Meta. Claiming that her funding was cut off, Donovan stated that at the time of her criticism of Meta, Harvard had received a $500 million pledge from Mark Zuckerberg’s charity, as per The Washington Post.

As per CNN, Joan Donovan made these shocking claims in a legal filing with the US Education Department, where she stated that as her funding was cut off, she was unable to hire assistants. This reportedly happened after she testified before the House and Senate subcommittees in 2021, talking about misinformation and social media, according to Entrepreneur.

In her testimonial, Joan also stated that she was terminated in 2022. She also spoke to The Logi, claiming that she had become a “target” in the university:

"From that very day forward, I was treated differently by the university to the point where I lost my job.”

Dr. Joan Donovan had been working at Harvard University since 2018 and was running the Technology and Social Change Research Project for the Shorenstein Center at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government, as per Entrepreneur.

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Dr. Joan Donovan joined the Boston University's College of Communication after her departure from Harvard

Donovan, a former Harvard professor and researcher stirred social media when she made claims about how she was fired following the donation to the university from the Chan Zuckerberg foundation. According to her disclosure note, the donation came shortly after the leak of 22,000 pages of Facebook’s internal documents by whistleblower and ex-employee Frances Haugen.

After Donovan left Harvard, she announced that she was joining Boston University's College of Communication as an assistant professor. Furthermore, prior to joining Harvard, she was the Research Lead for Data & Society’s Media Manipulation Initiative. She also has a Ph.D. in Sociology and Science Studies from the University of California.

Her work has been published in many journals such as Social Media + Society, Journal of Contemporary Ethnography (JCE), Information, Communication & Society, Social Studies of Science, and Online Information Review. It has also been covered by other media outlets like the Washington Post, The New York Times, and even The Atlantic.

As per Joan Donovan's official website, she is the founder of The Critical Internet Studies Institute. Donovan describes it as:

"A non-profit that fosters knowledge mobilization and organizes advocacy for a public interest internet, i.e. a thriving networked ecosystem of communication technologies that puts community safety and privacy at the core of design."

Her website also states that she co-authored the book, Meme Wars: The Untold Story of the Online Battles Upending Democracy in America.

In response to the disclosure notes, Harvard University claimed that they would be thoroughly investigating the matter and taking “appropriate corrective action.” Harvard spokesperson James Francis Smith further stated that the university did not fire Donovan:

“Joan Donovan was hired as a staff member (not a faculty member) to manage a media manipulation project. When the original faculty leader of the project left Harvard, the School tried for some time to identify another faculty member who had the time and interest to lead the project. After that effort did not succeed, the project was given more than a year to wind down.”

Smith clarified:

"Joan Donovan was not fired, and most members of the research team chose to remain at the School in new roles.”

At the moment, neither Mark Zuckerberg nor any other spokesperson from Meta has addressed the issue. However, as the news reached social media, netizens were left divided, as some sided with the former Harvard professor, while others questioned her claims.