Narrative: Facebook's Power
Each narrative page (like this) has a page describing and evaluating the narrative, followed by all the posts on the site tagged with that narrative. Scroll down beyond the introduction to see the posts.
As fake news sites boom, 58% of Americans still trust their sources – ReportLinker (Dec 20, 2016)
This is good context for a couple of different narratives – fake news and Facebook’s enormous power as a filter for news and other content. This is survey data on where people get their news from, and it shows that Facebook is the main online news source, with 32% of respondents saying they use it (Google News is next, at 21%). Some 18% of users only use one source of information, and for half of those it’s Facebook, whereas the majority do use multiple sources. And lots of people still use newspapers and TV for information too.
via As fake news sites boom, 58% of Americans still trust their sources – ReportLinker
Mark Zuckerberg says it’s ‘extremely unlikely’ fake news on Facebook changed the election outcome – Recode (Nov 13, 2016)
Mark Zuckerberg has continued to resist calls for Facebook to see itself as a media company, and to accept the editorial responsibilities that come with this role. This puts him in conflict with not only much of the rest of the industry and its commentariat but many users too, and it’s a tension that can only be resolved as Zuckerberg and Facebook recognize the product’s evolution and take steps to improve the user experience while reassuring users Facebook won’t abuse its power. That’s a really tough line to walk.
Facebook has repeatedly trended fake news since firing its human editors – The Washington Post (Oct 12, 2016)
This whole incident has been embarrassing for Facebook on a number of levels, reflecting its schizoid approach to its editorial role – on the one hand, it wants to disclaim responsibility for editing or filtering what its users see, and on the other it clearly can’t just leave these tasks to machines. Fake news would end up being an important factor in the presidential election, and it’s a conversation that’s still ongoing.
via Facebook has repeatedly trended fake news since firing its human editors – The Washington Post
Facebook CEO says group will not become a media company | Reuters (Aug 29, 2016)
Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook in general have long strenuously resisted the media company label, not least because media companies are valued much lower than tech companies. And yet Facebook has become arguably the most influential media company in the world over the past few years, a fact that’s only become clearer as 2016 has gone on. This identity crisis also makes it harder for Facebook to make smart decisions about how to manage problems like fake news on the site – the sooner it reaches some conclusions, the better.
via Facebook CEO says group will not become a media company | Reuters
Former Facebook Workers: We Routinely Suppressed Conservative News – Gizmodo (May 9, 2016)
The article has several statements from Facebook itself at the end, which deny the main points of the article. However, this article helped feed a narrative which was already emerging, that Facebook was deliberately or otherwise suppressing trending topics with a conservative bent. It also played into the larger narrative that Facebook has too much power over what its users read and see of the world, a narrative that gained a lot of steam in 2016.
via Former Facebook Workers: We Routinely Suppressed Conservative News
India Officially Rejects Facebook’s Free Internet Offering – Recode (Feb 8, 2016)
Free Basics is an initiative that Facebook cares about, but it’s not necessarily massively important for its overall performance financially or otherwise. As such, this is an emotional setback, but not necessarily an important one. However, the reasons for the decision are indicative of broader concerns which Facebook should be more concerned about: increasing worries about Facebook’s power and the ways in which it shapes users’ experience of the Internet.
via India Officially Rejects Facebook’s Free Internet Offering – Recode