Facebook has confirmed that a White House official will be leaving the administration to join the social network’s growing Washington office to focus on international policy issues.
Marne Levine, who currently serves as chief of staff at the White House National Economic Council, plans to join Facebook next month in the position of vice president of global public policy.
Levine will be the fifth staffer to join the Facebook’s Washington office as the social-networking giant steps up its advocacy work on a variety of fronts, ranging from privacy to child safety and Internet censorship.
Facebook spokesman Andrew Noyes told InternetNews.com that Levine’s primary focus will be international development, working with foreign governments and NGOs as the company expands in Asia, Europe and Latin America.
Tim Sparapani will continue to lead the Washington office, directing the company’s policy relations with Congress and the agencies.
Richard Allan, Facebook’s director of public policy for the EU, will retain the lead in Facebook’s policy work in Europe, where the company has faced intense scrutiny of its privacy policies.