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Is it really a net negative? There are _plenty_ of things wrong with Facebook but I still wouldn’t consider it net negative for society. Facebook has done a lo

Is it really a net negative? There are _plenty_ of things wrong with Facebook but I still wouldn’t consider it net negative for society. Facebook has done a lot to connect people that we don’t read about in news articles.

jb1991 6y ago
Plenty of other ways to use tech to connect people without such intrusions into security and privacy.
- conradev 6y ago
  There definitely are, and I didn’t argue that Facebook was the only way – just that it has done more good for the world than bad. There are indeed plenty of other ways to connect people without intrusions into privacy, and hopefully Facebook will be forced into those corners (chat apps broken up, content-based advertising instead, offering a subscription, etc.) People seem to think that the whole thing is rotten and we need to get rid of it, and it’s a great first instinct – but frankly Facebook is here to stay. We need to figure out how we can make that more sustainable.
  - randomsearch 6y ago
    Don’t want to labour this, but undermining democratic societies is such a negative it’s pretty hard to see any app balancing that one out. And that’s just a single example.
    - JKCalhoun 6y ago
      Agree: cool that grandma got to connect with the grandkids. Undermining a democracy though? I think net-negative still stands. I deleted FB years ago.
  - vanilla_nut 6y ago
    I've seen Facebook's algorithmic feeds radicalize an entire side of my family over the past 10 years because they've been allowed to bury themselves in a radical-right leaning feed of Fox, OANN, and online conspiracy theorists. There's nobody moderate left to help normalize their beliefs, so they keep drifting further and further right based on what Tucker Carlson tells them. I have a very hard time socializing that that half of my family any more because they bring up politics constantly and their beliefs on race, healthcare, etc. are frankly embarrassing to be associated with. And I say this as somebody who is overall very moderate and willing to engage with both left and right-leaning beliefs. Facebook made half of my family unbearable to deal with. I don't think that's a unique situation by any means. So I'd say that they're an awful awful cancer on society that needs to die.
    - Karunamon 6y ago
      Sorry, allowed to? I'm trying not to read this as some paternalistic take on what people should be allowed do read but failing. Please explain?
    - ryandrake 6y ago
      Not a Facebook fan here, but this argument is like saying "Alcohol made my dad an alcoholic!" Only true in the strictest medical/chemical sense. The bottle didn't leap into dad's hand by itself. I feel bad for your family, and this happened to a few folks in mine as well, but Facebook doesn't jump into your family's brains all by itself. Users are actively installing, using it, and poisoning themselves. I think Facebook is a net negative, and should be regulated like any other harmful addictive product. But, the blame for its affects must be shared with its users.
      - matkoniecz 6y ago
        If someone would be giving my friends alcohol for free and strongly encourage them to drink as much as possible - then yes, I would blame them for alcoholism and other damage.
      - Andrex 6y ago
        OK, then regulate Facebook like alcohol. No users under 21. ID needed for registration. Warning labels on every page. Refusing service to people clearly under the influence. Heavy fines, jail-time, and possible destruction of service if found to be in willful noncompliance. (Just as a start.)
LandR 6y ago
I think Facebook could very well be our civilizations great filter.
diveanon 6y ago
You should take some time to read about how Facebook "connected" a lot of people with common interests in Myanmar. Just so happened that common interest was genocide. When you build a radicalization engine, you are responsible for the radicals it creates.

jb1991 6y ago

Plenty of other ways to use tech to connect people without such intrusions into security and privacy.

conradev 6y ago
There definitely are, and I didn’t argue that Facebook was the only way – just that it has done more good for the world than bad. There are indeed plenty of other ways to connect people without intrusions into privacy, and hopefully Facebook will be forced into those corners (chat apps broken up, content-based advertising instead, offering a subscription, etc.) People seem to think that the whole thing is rotten and we need to get rid of it, and it’s a great first instinct – but frankly Facebook is here to stay. We need to figure out how we can make that more sustainable.
- randomsearch 6y ago
  Don’t want to labour this, but undermining democratic societies is such a negative it’s pretty hard to see any app balancing that one out. And that’s just a single example.
  - JKCalhoun 6y ago
    Agree: cool that grandma got to connect with the grandkids. Undermining a democracy though? I think net-negative still stands. I deleted FB years ago.
- vanilla_nut 6y ago
  I've seen Facebook's algorithmic feeds radicalize an entire side of my family over the past 10 years because they've been allowed to bury themselves in a radical-right leaning feed of Fox, OANN, and online conspiracy theorists. There's nobody moderate left to help normalize their beliefs, so they keep drifting further and further right based on what Tucker Carlson tells them. I have a very hard time socializing that that half of my family any more because they bring up politics constantly and their beliefs on race, healthcare, etc. are frankly embarrassing to be associated with. And I say this as somebody who is overall very moderate and willing to engage with both left and right-leaning beliefs. Facebook made half of my family unbearable to deal with. I don't think that's a unique situation by any means. So I'd say that they're an awful awful cancer on society that needs to die.
  - Karunamon 6y ago
    Sorry, allowed to? I'm trying not to read this as some paternalistic take on what people should be allowed do read but failing. Please explain?
  - ryandrake 6y ago
    Not a Facebook fan here, but this argument is like saying "Alcohol made my dad an alcoholic!" Only true in the strictest medical/chemical sense. The bottle didn't leap into dad's hand by itself. I feel bad for your family, and this happened to a few folks in mine as well, but Facebook doesn't jump into your family's brains all by itself. Users are actively installing, using it, and poisoning themselves. I think Facebook is a net negative, and should be regulated like any other harmful addictive product. But, the blame for its affects must be shared with its users.
    - matkoniecz 6y ago
      If someone would be giving my friends alcohol for free and strongly encourage them to drink as much as possible - then yes, I would blame them for alcoholism and other damage.
    - Andrex 6y ago
      OK, then regulate Facebook like alcohol. No users under 21. ID needed for registration. Warning labels on every page. Refusing service to people clearly under the influence. Heavy fines, jail-time, and possible destruction of service if found to be in willful noncompliance. (Just as a start.)

LandR 6y ago

I think Facebook could very well be our civilizations great filter.

diveanon 6y ago

You should take some time to read about how Facebook "connected" a lot of people with common interests in Myanmar. Just so happened that common interest was genocide. When you build a radicalization engine, you are responsible for the radicals it creates.