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I'm not sure I believe this. If it was months in the making on Facebook, why did Facebook not do more to stop it? Reading this it actually gives weight that Fac

I'm not sure I believe this. If it was months in the making on Facebook, why did Facebook not do more to stop it? Reading this it actually gives weight that Facebook was just as responsible for the insurrection as Parler.

akmarinov 6y ago
Facebook was way more responsible than Parler.
- Simulacra 6y ago
  I don't disagree with you. The evidence appears to support that conclusion, so I'm trying to understand why Facebook is given a pass. IMO Facebook has been the single greatest catalyst for abusive online behavior in twenty years, but it's in a protected class. I would like to know why. Is it just money?
  - trident5000 6y ago
    Because dems took total power in the elections and Apple and Google know they are under the antitrust microscope. Its likely indirect bribery in hopes of a returned favor.
    - yonaguska 6y ago
      Seems like every time big tech went in front of congress- it turned into a public fishing expedition for lobbying dollars. Democrats overwhelmingly called for censorship and regulation. Republicans overwhelmingly complained of unfair treatment. Big tech responds by preemptively censoring and regulating content. I believe that regulation is coming with dems in total power. Regulation will be written and paid for by big tech as a means to consolidate regulatory capture. I think you're right, it's indirect bribery. I doubt anything will be done about it.
  - spoonjim 6y ago
    It’s also, what functions does Facebook serve beyond organizing violence? Clearly it’s a lot. You can reasonably discuss banning handguns because they are only used to commit violence. You can’t reasonably discussing the ban of all knives, telling people who ask “how am I supposed to cook?” that they just need to bite their food into little pieces.
    - brummm 6y ago
      It's probably also rooted in the fact that the owner/CEO of facebook is much richer and better connected.
      - compiler-guy 6y ago
        Apple has a long history of willingness to kneecap Facebook. So reluctance to take on Zuck is not likely the reason. https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.cnn.com/cnn/2020/12/16/tech/facebook-apple-ios-privacy-rules/index.html https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.cnn.com/cnn/2020/12/16/tech...
    - ttt0 6y ago
      Are you implying that Parler was created specifically to organize violence? If that's what you're saying then please provide a clear evidence that proves this is the case. Saying something like that just seems really dishonest in most, if not all, contexts.
      - spoonjim 6y ago
        I can tell you that the content on Parler was, on a percentage basis, far closer to incitement of violence than, say, Reddit. I saw this for myself. I cannot tell you the motivations of the founders since I’m not a mind reader.
        ttt0 6y ago
        I think that's plausible, but I just have to question the framing that Parler served no other purpose than organizing violence. As an aside, Reddit is pretty tame in general, a more fair comparison would be against Facebook or Twitter.
  - jnwatson 6y ago
    In reality, it is because Facebook hosts its own infrastructure and doesn't have to answer to anyone. There were no government edicts behind Parler going down. It was just individual decisions made by other corporations.
    - ttt0 6y ago
      The infrastructure is one thing, but they still have to work with other companies to put their applications on Apple store, Google Play etc.
    - kodah 6y ago
      I'm sure backbone providers can be pressured in the same way a cloud provider can.
  - kube-system 6y ago
    I think people treat Facebook differently than Parler because Facebook is a mainstream communications platform and Parler was founded specifically to host content that other platforms found objectionable.
renewiltord 6y ago
Now that I think about it: most of the planning happened on American soil under the eyes of the American Government. I'm afraid there's no choice but to abolish government.
usefulcat 6y ago
> If it was months in the making on Facebook, why did Facebook not do more to stop it? Two things: 1) If FB is seen to lean too far either left or right, it will create an opportunity for a competitor to emerge on the other side. FB is huge, so they have a lot to lose in that scenario. 2) They literally profit from the circulation of the very stuff that some would have them sensor. I don't see what is even slightly surprising about they way they've handled this. Edit: side note - I personally think #1 is likely at some point in the future. People have already gone a fair way towards segregating themselves into various social/political bubbles; why not even more self-segregation? If enough people want that, then either FB will enable it or a competitor will emerge to enable it.
- mikem170 6y ago
  >2) They literally profit from the circulation of the very stuff that some would have them sensor. And as far as we know they may have been promoting inflammatory posts to drive engagement. They keep the algorithm they use to do that secret. I think they should show posts from friends in chronological order and let users filter them, or loose their common carrier status.

akmarinov 6y ago

Facebook was way more responsible than Parler.

Simulacra 6y ago
I don't disagree with you. The evidence appears to support that conclusion, so I'm trying to understand why Facebook is given a pass. IMO Facebook has been the single greatest catalyst for abusive online behavior in twenty years, but it's in a protected class. I would like to know why. Is it just money?
- trident5000 6y ago
  Because dems took total power in the elections and Apple and Google know they are under the antitrust microscope. Its likely indirect bribery in hopes of a returned favor.
  - yonaguska 6y ago
    Seems like every time big tech went in front of congress- it turned into a public fishing expedition for lobbying dollars. Democrats overwhelmingly called for censorship and regulation. Republicans overwhelmingly complained of unfair treatment. Big tech responds by preemptively censoring and regulating content. I believe that regulation is coming with dems in total power. Regulation will be written and paid for by big tech as a means to consolidate regulatory capture. I think you're right, it's indirect bribery. I doubt anything will be done about it.
- spoonjim 6y ago
  It’s also, what functions does Facebook serve beyond organizing violence? Clearly it’s a lot. You can reasonably discuss banning handguns because they are only used to commit violence. You can’t reasonably discussing the ban of all knives, telling people who ask “how am I supposed to cook?” that they just need to bite their food into little pieces.
  - brummm 6y ago
    It's probably also rooted in the fact that the owner/CEO of facebook is much richer and better connected.
    - compiler-guy 6y ago
      Apple has a long history of willingness to kneecap Facebook. So reluctance to take on Zuck is not likely the reason. https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.cnn.com/cnn/2020/12/16/tech/facebook-apple-ios-privacy-rules/index.html https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.cnn.com/cnn/2020/12/16/tech...
  - ttt0 6y ago
    Are you implying that Parler was created specifically to organize violence? If that's what you're saying then please provide a clear evidence that proves this is the case. Saying something like that just seems really dishonest in most, if not all, contexts.
    - spoonjim 6y ago
      I can tell you that the content on Parler was, on a percentage basis, far closer to incitement of violence than, say, Reddit. I saw this for myself. I cannot tell you the motivations of the founders since I’m not a mind reader.
      - ttt0 6y ago
        I think that's plausible, but I just have to question the framing that Parler served no other purpose than organizing violence. As an aside, Reddit is pretty tame in general, a more fair comparison would be against Facebook or Twitter.
- jnwatson 6y ago
  In reality, it is because Facebook hosts its own infrastructure and doesn't have to answer to anyone. There were no government edicts behind Parler going down. It was just individual decisions made by other corporations.
  - ttt0 6y ago
    The infrastructure is one thing, but they still have to work with other companies to put their applications on Apple store, Google Play etc.
  - kodah 6y ago
    I'm sure backbone providers can be pressured in the same way a cloud provider can.
- kube-system 6y ago
  I think people treat Facebook differently than Parler because Facebook is a mainstream communications platform and Parler was founded specifically to host content that other platforms found objectionable.

renewiltord 6y ago

Now that I think about it: most of the planning happened on American soil under the eyes of the American Government. I'm afraid there's no choice but to abolish government.

usefulcat 6y ago

> If it was months in the making on Facebook, why did Facebook not do more to stop it? Two things: 1) If FB is seen to lean too far either left or right, it will create an opportunity for a competitor to emerge on the other side. FB is huge, so they have a lot to lose in that scenario. 2) They literally profit from the circulation of the very stuff that some would have them sensor. I don't see what is even slightly surprising about they way they've handled this. Edit: side note - I personally think #1 is likely at some point in the future. People have already gone a fair way towards segregating themselves into various social/political bubbles; why not even more self-segregation? If enough people want that, then either FB will enable it or a competitor will emerge to enable it.

mikem170 6y ago
>2) They literally profit from the circulation of the very stuff that some would have them sensor. And as far as we know they may have been promoting inflammatory posts to drive engagement. They keep the algorithm they use to do that secret. I think they should show posts from friends in chronological order and let users filter them, or loose their common carrier status.