• by Gavin O'Malley , Staff Writer @mp_gavin, April 23, 2019

Struggling to fend off a rash of privacy scandals, Facebook just named Jennifer Newstead as its new general counsel and vice president of communications.

Newstead currently serves as legal adviser to the State Department, where she oversees work on domestic and international issues affecting U.S. foreign policy.

Newstead is replacing Colin Stretch, who announced plans to leave his role as Facebook’s general counsel, last year.

Prior to her stint at the State Department, Newstead was partner in the law firm of Davis, Polk & Wardwell LLP, where she represented clients in matters of cross-border regulation, enforcement and litigation. 

Newstead also previously served as general counsel of the Office of Management and Budget, a principal deputy assistant attorney general at the Department of Justice, and an associate White House counsel.

Facebook also just named John Pinette as vice president, global communications.

Pinette succeeds Caryn Marooney, who announced her plans to leave Facebook earlier this year.

Newstead and Pinette are joining a company firmly on the defensive. From an endless string of security blunders to calls for stricter industry regulations, Facebook’s brand is taking a serious beating.

From 2018 to 2019, Facebook saw its reputation take a nose dive on an annual ranking compiled by Axios and Harris. This year, the social giant fell 43 spots -- more than any other brand -- to an unenviable rank of 94 out of 100.

The few “brands” that performed worse than Facebook this year included the Trump Organization (#98), Phillip Morris (#99), and the U.S. Government (#100).