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Social media's turn for the worse

Social media's turn for the worse

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mchill
Cryptic

Behind the scenes

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26 Sep 21
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I was on Facebook for awhile about 8 years ago. It was fun at first, connecting with former classmates, relatives in distant cities, and a couple I M's in Europe. The last year before I disconnected, things began to turn ugly. Political ad's sparked debates, which turned many former friends against each other. A class reunion in 2013 fell apart because of so much tension and discord. I disconnected my account after 2 years.

And now this -

The case for deleting our Facebook accounts (that means Instagram, too) seems to grow stronger with each passing day. Increasingly, what may seem and feel like an organic social experience for users has — over several years — proven to be a carefully coordinated experiment for Facebook executives, with worrying and sometimes harmful results.

A New York Times report Tuesday detailed a creepy internal Facebook initiative code-named Project Amplify, in which the company planned to pump favorable articles about itself to users through its News Feed and advertisements. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg reportedly signed off on the initiative in August.

The Times reported that Facebook executives have made a concerted effort to distance Zuckerberg from scandals involving the company by having him talk almost exclusively about new products. This strategy was put to the test back in January, when Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg — not Zuckerberg — told Reuters the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol was “largely” not organized on Facebook. (Spoiler alert: It was.)

All of this is in addition to Facebook's problematic history with political propaganda. Roughly one-third of Americans received Russian-backed content on Facebook during the 2016 election cycle, the company reported in 2017.

Now is as good a time as any to leave your Facebook accounts by the wayside. The company’s executives are seemingly well aware of the site’s harmful impacts on society — they’re just hoping a few ads and pro-Facebook fluff pieces will distract you.

Today we have, email, snail mail, phone, text, fax, instant messaging, skype, zoom etc. to stay "connected"

Q: Do we really need social media on top of all this?
A: No!


https://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/facebooks-latest-scandal-reminder-time-delete-accounts-rcna2143

E

Joined
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No different than what happens around here, except we are generally total strangers.

moonbus
Über-Nerd (emeritus)

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@mchill said
I was on Facebook for awhile about 8 years ago. It was fun at first, connecting with former classmates, relatives in distant cities, and a couple I M's in Europe. The last year before I disconnected, things began to turn ugly. Political ad's sparked debates, which turned many former friends against each other. A class reunion in 2013 fell apart because of so much tension and d ...[text shortened]... No!


https://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/facebooks-latest-scandal-reminder-time-delete-accounts-rcna2143
The first thing to understand regarding FB is that they are NOT providing a free service to users. They are providing data mining to advertizers. Their entire business model treats 'users' as a commodity, trees to be felled and turned into virtual lumber.

Suzianne
Misfit Queen

Isle of Misfit Toys

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@eladar said
No different than what happens around here, except we are generally total strangers.
Especially you.

sh76
Civis Americanus Sum

New York

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@moonbus said
The first thing to understand regarding FB is that they are NOT providing a free service to users. They are providing data mining to advertizers. Their entire business model treats 'users' as a commodity, trees to be felled and turned into virtual lumber.
You mean a business trying to make money???

Oh, the humanity!

MB

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@mchill said
I was on Facebook for awhile about 8 years ago. It was fun at first, connecting with former classmates, relatives in distant cities, and a couple I M's in Europe. The last year before I disconnected, things began to turn ugly. Political ad's sparked debates, which turned many former friends against each other. A class reunion in 2013 fell apart because of so much tension and d ...[text shortened]... No!


https://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/facebooks-latest-scandal-reminder-time-delete-accounts-rcna2143
I left fascistbook last January and switched to MEWE and a couple other social media accounts just in case others were on those.
It was also a good way to leave certain people behind that didn't have my best interests at heart. The people that really appreciate you will switch, but don't expect as many people like facebook. Nothing else is as big. That is the disadvantage, but people have to start sometime. Fascistbook is too powerful and it will get worse the longer people wait to make the switch.

MB

Joined
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@sh76 said
You mean a business trying to make money???

Oh, the humanity!
There are no ads on MEWE.
They rely on donations which is optional.

Not every social media site is a money whore like fascistbook.

shavixmir
Lord

Sewers of Holland

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@metal-brain said
I left fascistbook last January and switched to MEWE and a couple other social media accounts just in case others were on those.
It was also a good way to leave certain people behind that didn't have my best interests at heart. The people that really appreciate you will switch, but don't expect as many people like facebook. Nothing else is as big. That is the disadvantag ...[text shortened]... metime. Fascistbook is too powerful and it will get worse the longer people wait to make the switch.
Fascist book?

🚨🚧Moronity… just plain moronity… with exaggeration… 🚧🚨

shavixmir
Lord

Sewers of Holland

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@mchill said
I was on Facebook for awhile about 8 years ago. It was fun at first, connecting with former classmates, relatives in distant cities, and a couple I M's in Europe. The last year before I disconnected, things began to turn ugly. Political ad's sparked debates, which turned many former friends against each other. A class reunion in 2013 fell apart because of so much tension and d ...[text shortened]... No!


https://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/facebooks-latest-scandal-reminder-time-delete-accounts-rcna2143
It’s obviously not just facebook.
Datamining, algorithms, etc. are all not very good for society.

But what about online buying? Pretty soon there’s only going to be supermarkets,
Fast food joints and boarded up shops left on the streets. What’s that doing to society?

moonbus
Über-Nerd (emeritus)

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@shavixmir said
It’s obviously not just facebook.
Datamining, algorithms, etc. are all not very good for society.

But what about online buying? Pretty soon there’s only going to be supermarkets,
Fast food joints and boarded up shops left on the streets. What’s that doing to society?
It has already happened. I remember book stores, places where one could go and actually handle books, sit down in a cushy chair, and browse through them before deciding whether to buy. All gone now.

E

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@moonbus said
It has already happened. I remember book stores, places where one could go and actually handle books, sit down in a cushy chair, and browse through them before deciding whether to buy. All gone now.
We still have large chain book stores with chairs you can sit in and read books. They have a small coffee shop in the middle of the store as well.

moonbus
Über-Nerd (emeritus)

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@Eladar

I am glad to hear that at least one has survived. There used to be more. Barnes and Noble closed down.

E

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@moonbus said
@Eladar

I am glad to hear that at least one has survived. There used to be more. Barnes and Noble closed down.
We still have them in the US.

AverageJoe1
Catch the Train 47!

Lake Como

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@mchill said
I was on Facebook for awhile about 8 years ago. It was fun at first, connecting with former classmates, relatives in distant cities, and a couple I M's in Europe. The last year before I disconnected, things began to turn ugly. Political ad's sparked debates, which turned many former friends against each other. A class reunion in 2013 fell apart because of so much tension and d ...[text shortened]... No!


https://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/facebooks-latest-scandal-reminder-time-delete-accounts-rcna2143
WSJ has an article today about the danger of Facebook to our teenagers. Most of us have WSJ accounts, someone please forward it to Suzianne who is all hot and bothered about everything. I don't think she subscribes!!!
But don't ask her a question.

mchill
Cryptic

Behind the scenes

Joined
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27 Sep 21

@eladar said
No different than what happens around here, except we are generally total strangers.
It's a lot different. None of us is making billions of dollars off of ad's on this site.

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