Facebook founder befriends French president

Mark Zuckerberg meets Nicolas Sarkozy on the sidelines of e-G8 summit.

AFP | May 26, 2011



The Internet revolution today reached the top level of world leadership when Facebook pioneer Mark Zuckerberg met President Nicolas Sarkozy on the closing day of the first "e-G8" summit.

The 27-year-old American founder of the social networking site -- on which Sarkozy himself has a page -- visited the Elysee palace between the president's meetings with his cabinet and the visiting Japanese prime minister.

The encounter came on the sidelines of the "e-G8", which on its second day was fast becoming a face-off between the powers that be, big business and web rebels.

Zuckerberg left the Elysee dressed in a suit and appeared later in jeans and a T-shirt on stage at the e-G8, where he was diplomatic about the meeting with Sarkozy, a day after the president ruffled feathers with his line on Internet regulation.

"It was fun," the young New Yorker told the gathering.

"I understand where he's coming from. I appreciate the chance to be here and be part of the dialogue."

Sarkozy kicked off the summit of top online and media barons yesterday, hailing their "Internet revolution" but warning them that some degree of government regulation was inevitable to avoid "democratic chaos."

Top media bosses in their closing session today debated a draft proposal for the G8 world leaders at their summit this week that governments should provide Internet access to citizens but not regulate online content.

Comments

 

Other News

Maharashtra adopts hybrid model for Census 2026 data collection

The government has initiated preparations for Census 2026 in Maharashtra, introducing a hybrid approach that combines optional self-enumeration with comprehensive door-to-door data collection to ensure complete coverage across the state.   According to senior officials, the Self-

What the nine Indian Nobel winners have in common

A Touch Of Genius: The Wisdom of India’s Nobel Laureates Edited by Rudrangshu Mukherjee Aleph Books, Rs 1499, 848 pages  

Income Tax dept holds Ghatkopar Outreach on new IT Act

The Income Tax Department organised an outreach programme in Ghatkopar, Mumbai, to raise awareness about the key features of the Income Tax Act, 2025, effective April 1, 2026. The initiative is part of a nationwide effort to promote taxpayer awareness, simplify compliance, and strengthen a transparent, eff

Making AI work where governance is closest to people

India’s next governance leap may not solely come from digitisation. It will come from making public systems more intelligent, more adaptive, and more responsive to the dynamics at the grassroots. That opportunity is especially significant at the panchayat level, where governance is not an abstract po

Borrowing troubles: How small loans are quietly trapping youth

A silent crisis is playing out in the pocket of young India, not in stock markets or government treasuries, but in smartphones of college students and first-jobbers who clicked on the Apply Now button without reading the small print.  A decade ago, to take a loan, you had to do some paperwor

A 19th-century pilgrim’s progress

The Travels of a Sadhu in the Himalayas By Jaladhar Sen (Translated by Somdatta Mandal) Speaking Tiger Books, 259 pages, ₹499.00  


Archives

Current Issue

Opinion

Facebook Twitter Google Plus Linkedin Subscribe Newsletter

Twitter