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>Facebook failed to provide crucial details about its "Cross-Check" program that reportedly shielded millions of VIP users from the social media platform's norm
by alex_c 5y ago
>Facebook failed to provide crucial details about its "Cross-Check" program that reportedly shielded millions of VIP users from the social media platform's normal content moderation rules, according to the company's oversight board.
>Facebook told the oversight board that the program applied only "to a small number of decisions," which the company subsequently acknowledged was misleading
Indeed. Millions of users is a tiny fraction of Facebook's total user count, so in terms of absolute numbers it is probably a relatively small number of content.
But in terms of reach and influence, I would expect the VIP users to have by far a disproportionately large share. I would also expect them to be the most likely to post content that would end up in front of an oversight board. But of course, they are also the ones most able to raise a stink if Facebook moderates their content...
- barelysapient 5y agoI guess its not much of an oversight board then! The number of accounts under the program versus not I think misses the point. Facebook has separate rules that a privileged few get to play by. So privileged in fact, that their self appointed overseers didn't in fact oversee. And these board members? What a joke. A kangaroo board. How embarrassing for those board members.
- kfprt 5y agoThe board members were chosen for their placating potential not any governance capacity.
- fatjokes 5y agoNot much of a VIP either! Millions of them... I'm partly joking. Out of billions of users it's still one in thousands.
- obmelvin 5y agoYes, relatively it is a low amount...but at first glance it feels crazy that millions would get VIP status
- amichal 5y ago1/1000 errors/bugs/exceptions are still a big deal in my book! I have a relative who worked in high volume manufacturing. Uncaught errors that could hurt people were still a problem even if they could in theory happen at 10^-7 if you are making billions of something...
- 908B64B197 5y agoMy understanding is that part of the reason these accounts were on a special list is that they were getting reported a lot. For nothing. Like, Doug The Pug might get reported a thousand times per post for animal abuse.
- michaelcampbell 5y ago> I guess its not much of an oversight board then! FB's "oversight boards" are to check a box saying they have oversight boards, nothing more. I have no insider knowledge here, I'm looking at FB as a black box whose insides can only be deduced by the inputs and outputs, mind.
- tremon 5y agoWell, they didn't call it an "oversight" board for nothing...
- ssss11 5y agoOf course, it’s all a charade! One person owns and runs that company regardless of what they tell the media.
- newfonewhodis 5y agoThey said "to a small number of decisions", and NOT "to a small _percent_ of decisions". Millions of accounts - and likely tens of millions of decisions stemming from those accounts - is not a small _number_.
- changoplatanero 5y agoI don't get what the big deal is here. If you fly United a lot then you will get premium service. It's in recognition of how much money you are making for their business and how much they value keeping you as a customer. Similarly, if you build a large audience on Facebook then you get premium service in content moderating and its in recognition of how important you are to their business.
- hoppyhoppy2 5y agoPresumably the people tasked with overseeing United's decisions are not given misleading information about the extent of United's programs for VIP customers.