Previously when these type of patterns were brought up, the discussion was more using the terms "clickbait" and the concerns were about hidden "sponsored advert

Previously when these type of patterns were brought up, the discussion was more using the terms "clickbait" and the concerns were about hidden "sponsored advertising". Using inflammatory populist politics to sell shady items is a pretty old pattern too (certainly it has existed throughout my lifetime). I agree it's a boogey-man to think it decided the election. Personally, I stopped using Facebook a long time ago partially because of the platform's embrace of "clickbait" and obnoxious "viral" sponsored content. The "fake news" stories, which are just another side of the same coin, confirms to me that Facebook is not a terribly trustworthy social media platform. Maybe it will confirm this to other people too. So it will be interesting to see how Facebook reacts.