Facebook profits surge despite privacy scandal

Facebook shrugged off the cloud of Russian election interference Wednesday with the release of its first quarter profits. Revenue soared 49 percent to $12 billion, while profit jumped 63 percent, to $5 billion. The world’s most popular social media platform also increased its user reach, boosting by 13 percent the number of people who checked the site at least once a day. In 2017, Facebook brought in $39.94 billion, about 17 percent of total online ad spending, according to data firm eMarketer. Ironically, the thing that prompted Russian operatives to use the site in an attempt to influence the 2016 U.S. presidential election also makes it perennially popular with advertisers, no matter how much political criticism the company endures. “While privacy and security are very serious issues that Facebook is rightly focusing on, as long as the return-on-investment is there, advertisers won’t stop investing in Facebook altogether,” said Aaron Goldman, chief marketing officer at digital media planning and buying company 4C.