re: Facebook - am i a tech version of a 45 supporter?
March 7, 2024
Radical Thought #1 - facebook isn’t bad
A few weeks ago one of my good friends and her husband from the east coast came out. We met up with our other mutual friends who live in the East Bay. It was an awesome couples weekend filled with Napa wine and bougie expensive dinners at Ad Hoc. After the wine&dine day, we spent the rest of the weekend playing Exploding Kittens and started talking about work. My friend's husband just started working at Facebook (FB) as a Data Infra Engr in VA. Outside of the Bay, you hear FB and think Silicon Valley, the vampire Zuckerberg, and your high school classmates who peaked at 20 yrs old. Curious on people’s opinions, I asked “So what are yall’s thoughts on Facebook these days? They’ve been in the news quite a bit”. Mind you, this was very soon after news broke that Facebook was well aware that Instagram affects mental health in adolescent girls - and not in a positive way.
It got quiet and a little tense. We discussed further and I heard everyone’s points of view. The conversation got me thinking about FB in the grand scheme of things. And then after that we went to downtown Oakland and bought $9 beers and $7 fries - how Bay Area *rolls eyes*. But as I reflected on that discussion as I lay to sleep, I realized FB is entirely political. And thus, we have a nice rest of the weekend.
Fast forward 2 weeks, I’m in Hawai’i visiting my grandparents with my husband. G&G don’t have FB, they are basically internet ghosts. But that wasn’t always the case. When my great uncle passed, they inherited his tech gadgets - including his iPad along with access to his FB account. G&G flirted with FB, using my great-uncle’s account to check on all their family members and see photos (this was pre Grandma’s iPhone). Back in that day - circa 2012 - FB conned you into thinking they needed access to all of your apps/contacts. Obviously it’s very different now - pretty much every company has access to this level of info, thanks to it being sold by your financial institutions for profit. Regardless of where we are today with information sharing, G&G were turned off because FB started suggesting “people you may know” and discovered that FB had accessed their contacts. They felt this was an invasion of privacy. And I totally understand that…okay I kinda understand that.
Present day - I was with my grandma, we were heading home from the post office and she had gotten the new Time magazine with Zuckerberg on the front with a caption “Delete” Facebook (Cancel/Delete?)” Of course this edition was hot off the press after Frances Haugen, the FB Whistleblower, testified in front of Congress. So naturally I had some thoughts and comments about her testimony…She worked at FB for 2 years and claims they were misleading the public, that company culture valued money over peeps, blah blah blah. And I’m thinking, “well of course the stuff that she’s saying is true. They are a capitalistic company, of course they value profit over people. That’s what America was built on, capitalism.” That doesn’t make right, but this is no news to anyone. Tobacco, alcohol, big pharma - clearly valuing profit over people, again not right, but that’s just what it is. Maybe FB is just another one of these guys.
Radical Thought #2 - facebook and other private companies shouldn’t have to control societal opinions&perceptions that arise from social media content
But back to Hawai’i, I’m chatting with my grandparents and my grandpa is like “I hate FB and Zuckerberg” and he talks about the invasion of privacy and I’m like “well technically you did give them permission to do that.” I hated myself for saying that. I turned into the nasty “well, actually” girl. I also hated myself for seemingly “defending” FB. Now Zuckerberg, he’s a CEO of a public company, I’m sure he’s done some shady stuff in his time. I’m sure FB has made some shady decisions too…but hear me out.
My husband used to work at Juul so I wonder if that’s hardened my view. Juul with all its bad decisions and did provide a better alternative for target people.. I was in my hometown a few years ago, when a man stopped us in the package store and he saw my husband’s sweatshirt and said “oh Juul do you work there? Honestly, it really changed my life. I was able to quit smoking cigarettes.”
But, that’s not the story we’re hearing.
And that’s not the story we hear with the FB situation either. Sure, social media isn’t as polarizing as teens getting addicted to nicotine, but when I think about FB and all the criticism the organization is receiving I wonder, “how do people so quickly forget the positives that FB has brought into their lives?” People say Instagram (IG) is destroying young girls’ self-perception, but what about the modeling industry? Instagram is just an avenue to put those standards on display even more. Anytime you look at a magazine, you are seeing these unrealistic beauty standards that are altering points of view. While IG makes this constant, these standards didn’t just start happening. Why don’t we talk about the deceptive and unrealistic beauty standards within the fashion industry. Yes, I understand the desire to achieve social acceptance- maslow’s hierarchy - likes and dislikes are ‘that’ new thing. But, that’s just another ‘new thing’ in a long history of social beings vying to be accepted by their larger community. Same story, just a different time. Is FB/IG responsible for regulating content like that?
Radical thought #3 - facebook should be proud of running that internal study
Overall, I think - it’s really great that FB ran that study, even if it was only meant to be absorbed internally. Now no one can deny that it has an effect, and FB can easily justify the budget to their investors and start to figure out ways to improve their platforms.This is a big step. As a company you always need to understand how you stack up, in order to measure how you’re improving. Prime example - companies’ challenges in admitting they have diversity issues. The worst thing is shaming someone for publishing their diversity metrics , because then they stop publishing or sharing the results, which decreases the awareness and response. They say that admitting you have a problem is the first step in fixing the problem - and this couldn’t ring truer in this scenario. However, we must recognize that it isn’t black and white, it’s a gray area so that doesn’t easily mean FB is the devil.
Radical thought #4 - the onus doesn’t fall on facebook, but rather larger society to instill traits that empower the future generations to continuously find the line in the sand
Now let’s talk about the first amendment. Freedom of speech. This one is hard. This one is really hard. If FB comes in and regulates speech or what people are posting it becomes tricky. Of course suicide, organizing hate crimes, child abuse, domestic violence - clear no nos. When it comes to regulating peoples’ thoughts, photos they post of themselves, where is the line? How are you as someone just sitting in the Bay supposed to monitor and understand if this person is willing to act in an extremist manner? It’s not easy. I’m not saying it can’t be done,. It would take a lot of time and investment. But at the same time, while all this responsibility is falling on FB, where is the government? Rather than being reactive they should develop a partnership with FB to have advisors step in proactively, before the harm is done. Let’s stop it before it even starts.
I lean very liberal, and of course I think that all of my beliefs are right and conservative viewpoints are wrong. But, I guess I respect the ability to have a point of view. But one of my friends told me, your rights end where another’s begin. It’s your right as long as you aren’t infringing on someone else’s. Where is that line? It changes. It moves. There is no clear answer, that’s for sure.
I've been very privileged to grow up surrounded by educated people who have enabled me to be able to take a step back from FB when I want. I used FB a lot in highschool. Then I transferred to Instagram (IG), and then IG became too toxic for me. Toxic positivity on IG was a REAL thing for me. I found myself thinking I was lesser. I was looking for updates from my friends and family and then saw updates from mere acquaintances that were only centered on success. I was the only one struggling to hit my goals. My imposter syndrome thrived off of the stream of “positivity” from IG and that wasn’t the reinforcement I needed. I don’t believe in that. We need to share in our triumphs and our struggles. So I’m taking a break from IG and I’ll get back on when I’m ready.
Radical thought #5 - facebook has supported everyday people who want to do big things and take that leap of faith
When I graduated from college, I decided to move West to the Bay Area. My grandparents were in Hawaii, immediate family and close friends were all in Maryland. There is no way I could've stayed as up to date with family and friends if it weren't for FB and IG. I’m not a texter, I’m not a phone caller. I’d see updates from friends and family about things they’re doing, and then would maybe reach out via text “oh cool, I saw this update - that’s so awesome” . That doesn’t mean that's the only way I engage with people, I'm just saying it allowed me to be present and enjoy my time as I just moved out to the Bay. And when I think about it from the aspect of bringing people together, FB has connected the world in a way that we have never known and it’s provided a lot of community for people. Good? Bad? Regardless, FB can be a place where folks can feel isolated, but most of the time you will find community there. Interconnecting the world. Bridging the gap. Living in the Bay Area, FB isn’t all that bad. I personally am really excited to see what they have in store with this new transformation to Meta. Whatever the Metaverse is….. I want parents to educate their children to accept different points of view, and understand when you need to take a break from Social Media. The onus is on all of us in society, not just on a single private company who ultimately is striving for profit.
conclusion…well sort of
Well there you have it. My “radical” points of view. But are they really radical or just in line with a capitalistic mindset.. That’s what I’m not sure of. As I voice my opinions, I wonder if I’m the tech version of a Trump Supporter? I guess only time and society will tell.
