Facebook and its properties, which include Instagram, now reach two-thirds of America for an average of 35 minutes a day. According to Zeynep Tufekci “[inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=””]The sight of lawmakers yelling at Mr. Zuckerberg might feel cathartic, but the danger of a public spectacle is that it will look like progress, but amount to nothing[/inlinetweet]: a few apologies from Mr. Zuckerberg, some earnest-sounding promises to do better, followed by a couple of superficial changes to Facebook that fail to address the underlying structural problem”.
[inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=””]Facebook’s public relations strategy has been the same for years. After each scandal, it expresses regrets, announces a few cosmetic fixes and then works like mad to scuttle any legislation that might have a favorable impact on the core problem: [/inlinetweet]how our data is harvested, used and profited from. It would be a shame if we went through that again.
[inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=””]So how has Facebook weathered so many mistakes in the past? In part because it is a reckless company (“Move fast and break things” used to be a company motto of sorts). [/inlinetweet]And in part because the data — a tantalizing resource for programmers — could be used to lure developers to make games, quizzes and other apps for Facebook that would keep users coming back to the site.
Yet even with all this only Wall Street is the one punishing the site. While there may be some users who will quit the site there is no sign of a mass exodus from Millennials who want to hold the site accountable for its actions. [inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=””]The fact that Facebook may have helped elect the most corrupt administration in history doesn’t seem to matter, but what does matter is that Trump has damaged the financial future of Millennials.[/inlinetweet]
So are people too addicted to Facebook to quit the habit or don’t they care that Facebook has sold their online lives to anyone for a price? I’m not sure. [inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=””]The fact that Sheryl Sandberg is still employed baffles me since she was supposed to be the adult in the room of Millennials who like to get things done while breaking the rules while not thinking about the repercussions. [/inlinetweet]
[inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=””]Let’s also remember that when an internal memo leaked about the breach of privacy Facebook’s Millennials were more concerned about the leaker than the breach of trust.[/inlinetweet]
So who has the responsibility of oversight of online sites like Facebook? Surely we don’t believe the government can oversee online privacy, but there are solutions. Only when Facebook users start leaving the site in droves will they get the message that what they have done is unacceptable. However, [inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=””]my guess is that in 3-4 months we will all forget about this betrayal of trust and continue because too many are addicted to their Facebook feeds.[/inlinetweet]
