General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsFaceBook morphed into something not imagined.
Mark Zuckerberg had no idea that FaceBook would become what it is today. No one did.
It was not created to be a media platform. It was not intended to be a place where people get their news and information. But, that is what has happened.
Unfortunately, it has morphed into one of the largest propaganda platforms this world has ever known. People are able to create their own news, whatever fits their ideology, and then pass it on as "real" news.
It now appears that Russian intelligence saw this trend before Americans saw it? We were all victims of this propaganda in the last election.
Facebook should come with a warning. Do not believe anything on FaceBook unless it has been researched and validated. It is a propaganda tool like we have never seen before.
madokie
(51,076 posts)one of my wifes friends set up a facebook for her but to this day she has no desire to even log in. This has been at least 2 years ago.
Myself I attempted to create a facebook account but it was too invasive for my liking so I quit. No facebook in our home. Period
kentuck
(111,053 posts)...the family set up a Facebook page so we could all stay in touch. It seemed like the greatest thing that was ever invented, at the time. But, I have seen it grow into this massive propaganda machine.
samnsara
(17,606 posts)..its so congested in there any more
kentuck
(111,053 posts)It permits just enough information to create confusion in the masses. It's like a riot with everyone yelling something different at the person they are addressing.
bluepen
(620 posts)people who are more suited for FBs horrible culture dont start making their way over to Twitter.
Look at how Trump uses Twitter to promote propaganda and lies.
bluepen
(620 posts)Almost 100% of the time, people calling him out are at the top of the thread.
Very different situation there than on FB.
Facebook is rampant disinformation, throughly debunked bullshit still making he rounds on that cesspool of a website. Then theres the tired old family photo album aspect of FB (with heaps of fake praise), along with the personal drama (with heaps of fake sympathy). Just awful. But hey, its geared toward a certain set of users so, have at it.
kentuck
(111,053 posts)His supporters still believe him.
L. Coyote
(51,129 posts)Dave Starsky
(5,914 posts)I particularly love the "guy" whose avatar image is a picture of his neck.
bluepen
(620 posts)after showing clips of him speaking.
kentuck
(111,053 posts)Total unknowns are re-tweeted as if it was gospel... We have seen these names debated here on DU.
bluepen
(620 posts)to a given platform, whether its social media or message boards. Thats more of an issue of many peoples need/desire for confirmation bias.
I just think FB has a horrible culture in every way.
And you get to choose your own audience.
Generally, I am not a fan of social media. Especially FB. I had an acquaintance who was addicted to FB. He got where he literally couldn't put his phone down even when you were talking to him. Very annoying.
L. Coyote
(51,129 posts)That is the key to Facebook's control over what people think and how they are able to profit. They recently made another change to gain more control, forcing me to select "most recent" on my newsfeed so they don't get to tell me what is more important for me to see first.
We need a new social media platform for realists, built to exclude social control and profit enterprising. That means hosting your own content instead of massive server farms.
kentuck
(111,053 posts)You could become a billionaire.
mshasta
(2,108 posts)My husband and I only have a linkedin account only, we don't use facebook nor twitter. Everyone should follow lead
kentuck
(111,053 posts)As it is, it is too large to control.
MrsCoffee
(5,801 posts)evolved into anything in the first place.
Welcome to Idiocracy.
kentuck
(111,053 posts)But, very quickly, it became an outlet for people to express their opinions, factual or not.
Baitball Blogger
(46,684 posts)kentuck
(111,053 posts)It is an extremely difficult terrain to navigate.
ileus
(15,396 posts)The past 8 or 9 years of my families life is recorded there. Major and minor events are there easily recalled, and there for "friends" to see as I see fit.
It's a darned handy platform for most everything. I'd love to be cool and progressive and say I don't use facebook, but that'd be a lie.
Our dog even has his own page that he kept updated since he was 8 weeks old. I think he also has an instagram account. He's one social butterfly...
Lisa0825
(14,487 posts)I keep in touch with family and friends around the country and the world.
I'm in a support group for a rare disease, and can't imagine how lost I would have felt without being able to connect with others who have it.
I live alone, so it's really a social outlet for me. I would feel much more isolated without it.
Tracer
(2,769 posts)I don't have a Facebook account, but use my daughter's to see what my son, daughter-in-law and other relatives are doing.
I've never seen an ad, article, or any other kind of propaganda on Facebook -- at least on the pages that I frequent.
Yes, I block ads on Firefox. Is that the reason?
Pardon my naiveté.
kentuck
(111,053 posts)It depends on who and what your "family and friends" want to discuss on Facebook.
Tracer
(2,769 posts)our only political discussions consists of our disgust with the Asshole. [He who shall not be named].
kentuck
(111,053 posts)WhiskeyGrinder
(22,309 posts)kentuck
(111,053 posts)The divisiveness is much more raw.
WhiskeyGrinder
(22,309 posts)kentuck
(111,053 posts)But a lot of people like to talk about politics more than cats and dogs, believe it or not.
WhiskeyGrinder
(22,309 posts)kentuck
(111,053 posts)Politics or Dogs and Cats??
WhiskeyGrinder
(22,309 posts)Your thesis is that Facebook has turned into something it wasn't intended to be and that's somehow terrible. That's what happens with most new tools; users find new ways to use it that fit their needs. Some people are finding out that their acquaintances, families and friends hold views that they didn't know they had, and some are consuming content that is false. That happens on all tech platforms as well as in real life. Calls to boycott or take down Facebook are odd to me, I guess, because it's such a user-driven experience; many objections people have to it can be solved by using it more effectively.
kentuck
(111,053 posts)It said that Budweiser had withdrawn all association with the NFL.
They received it from someone else and "shared" it.
Is it true? I don't know. I doubt it.
But you cannot keep up with the lies and false information because there is no desire to post just facts or to differentiate between fact and fiction.
WhiskeyGrinder
(22,309 posts)As with all content, it's important to vet who's producing it and why.
Kolesar
(31,182 posts)That is why most of us never heard the extreme judgements that Hillary Clinton was a criminal.
I think they bought the lists. They may have been stolen or free.
MineralMan
(146,262 posts)It is a social media venue, and works great to keep in touch with friends and relatives, despite the heavy ad load. For news, it's useless. There are many news aggregation sites, including the search engines. Using appropriate technology appropriately is the best approach.
Madam45for2923
(7,178 posts)In 2011, Facebook asked for political ads on its site to be regulated like campaign buttons, not TV ads, which require a disclaimer.
Link to tweet
How Facebook deliberately pursued policies that left its platform vulnerable to being exploited http://money.cnn.com/2017/09/27/technology/business/facebook-political-ad-rules/index.html by @donie
Link to tweet
IronLionZion
(45,380 posts)any person can stand on a street corner and spew forth whatever nonsense they want. Such is life.
One feature that I have seen is that some posts will have a "related links" section where the top result is a Snopes piece dismissing it as false. This could be used for instant fact checking. Or a google or other search feature tied to such posts so that a person could verify quickly and conveniently. It needs to be instant or people won't bother using it.