Connect with us

SOCIAL

Facebook Issues Official Response to Claims Made in Netflix Documentary ‘The Social Dilemma’

Published

on

facebook issues official response to claims made in netflix documentary the social dilemma

In a very uncharacteristic move, Facebook has today issued an official rebuke to claims made in the new Netflix documentary ‘The Social Dilemma‘, which aims to provide an overview of the various ways in which social media platforms have become increasingly divisive and dangerous as their usage has increased over time.

Most reviews of The Social Dilemma have actually been highly critical, noting that while the documentary does make some valid and important points, it descends into sensationalism, which ultimately dilutes its key messaging.

But clearly, it’s got Facebook concerned. The Social Network generally stands pat on most criticisms and claims of this sort, but with reports that many users have considered deleting their Facebook and Instagram accounts after watching the documentary, the company felt the need to issue a two-page, seven-point response to its core points.

Facebook Social Dilemma response

Facebook’s responses are as you would expect:

  • On social media addiction – “[we] prioritize meaningful social interactions”
  • On people as the product – “we don’t sell your information to anyone”
  • On algorithms – ” Portraying algorithms as ‘mad’ may make good fodder for conspiracy documentaries, but the reality is a lot less entertaining”
  • On data usage – “Despite what the film suggests, we have policies that prohibit businesses from sending us sensitive data about people”
  • On polarization – “The overwhelming majority of content that people see on Facebook is not polarizing or even political”
  • On election interference – “the film leaves out what we have done since 2016 to build strong defenses to stop people from using Facebook to interfere in elections”
  • On misinformation – “The idea that we allow misinformation to fester on our platform, or that we somehow benefit from this content, is wrong” 

Facebook has shared its opinions on all of these topics in the past, so there’s nothing surprising in its responses. The only surprise, as noted, is that Facebook felt the need to respond at all – if anything, an official response from Facebook will only add more fuel to the fire, and prompt more people to check out the documentary.

If Facebook felt a need to respond, it must have struck a nerve, right? There must be something to it worth checking out. Right?

And while Facebook’s responses are as expected, they do somewhat misconstrue the core of some key elements. 

For example, in response to the claim that ‘people are the product’ on Facebook, Facebook twists that question to be about personal data sharing, which is not exactly what the documentary makers mean. Even if Facebook doesn’t provide your information to advertisers directly, Facebook does indeed make a lot of money from its advanced ad targeting systems, which utilizes people’s personal information to better focus Facebook ads. 

In this sense, people are the product, data is the product, and Facebook has the most intricate database of personal information ever created – even if it doesn’t, as Facebook notes, share those insights directly with advertisers, as such.

You could argue that Facebook’s counter-claims on polarization and misinformation are also a little misleading, but a lot of it comes down to how you choose to answer the question, as opposed to what the actual answer might be.

As has been well-documented, Facebook has turned a blind eye to certain controversial issues and topics at times, from which it has derived user engagement benefits, while various experiments have shown that users can indeed become more politically-aligned via algorithmic recommendations and selective blocking tools.

Facebook has even underlined that case itself – earlier this year, Facebook’s head of VR and AR Andrew Bosworth published what was intended to be an internal memo, in which he acknowledged that Facebook’s algorithm essentially incites further division through news content exposure.  

But Facebook tends to re-frame these questions in its responses, and shift the focus onto other areas – like, for example, what it’s done to improve its political ad efforts since 2016. Which is true, Facebook has improved on this front, but there are still significant concerns that the platform is being used for political misinformation and voter manipulation programs across the world.

Saying ‘yeah, but…’ doesn’t necessarily rebuke the core premise in many of these cases and queries.

Which, again, is why it’s strange that Facebook has bothered to respond at all, because it only puts more focus onto its processes, and leads to posts like this one, which further question its claims.

I can only imagine that Facebook has seen something a significant jump in the number of people either deactivating their accounts, or claiming that they will (ironically, on Facebook), which has prompted its PR team to take action. But it seems misguided – Facebook would have been better off sitting this one out, and letting the initial discussion around the documentary fade out on its own.  

Socialmediatoday.com

Keep an eye on what we are doing
Be the first to get latest updates and exclusive content straight to your email inbox.
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Invalid email address

SOCIAL

7 tips for creating great digital presence

Published

on

7 tips for creating great digital presence

DEAR READERS: Companies of all kinds are finding it imperative to build a digital strategy to compete in a world where almost everyone is shopping and doing business online. How can small companies, including startups and those with just a few employees, get the kind of following on their websites and social media platforms that they’ll need to succeed?






There are several steps to take to build your business online.




It is a problem many companies are trying to get their arms around, according to everyone I reached out to. Here are a few tips to get started on the road to social media success:

Develop clearly defined goals. “Determine your objectives, whether they are enhancing brand awareness, generating leads or driving sales growth, as they will serve as guiding principles for developing your strategy,” suggests Dmitriy Shelepin CEO and head of SEO at Miromind.

Identify your ideal followers. That means going beyond demographics like gender and age, according to brand consultant Faith James, CEO of The Personal Branding Consultancy. “It’s important to go deeper into their psychographics — how they think, what motivates them, what their core desires are,” James says. “By focusing on the psychographics, you focus on the emotional connectors that build a stronger connection which goes beyond just the transactional ‘buy my stuff.’ ”

People are also reading…

Choose and prioritize platforms. Shelepin says it is crucial to choose platforms “that resonate with your desired audience and align with your business objectives,” and suggests focusing on one or two of those platforms “to deliver quality over quantity.”

Provide value. James says value can come in various forms, but stresses that it boils down to “helping your audience get a small win in the areas that are meaningful to them.

“If a hair salon is looking to grow their following, they might offer tips on their website and social media platforms such as ‘How to Have Your Hair Color Last Longer,’ ‘3 Tips on How to Beat the Humidity Frizz,’ or ‘How to Avoid Chlorine Damage While Swimming at the Pool,’ ” James says.

Value also can come by educating and informing your audience with things like educational blog posts that establish industry expertise, Shelepin adds.

Invite engagement. This is an essential step, James stresses. “In all instances, the business would invite the audience to share their own hair drama stories, share their own tricks they are using to make their hair color last longer, and invite the audience to submit their own questions about hair care,” James explains.

Build relationships. “Use social media to connect with customers, respond promptly, and share relevant content,” Shelepin says.

Don’t forget about email. It is a great way to maintain customer relationships and to deliver exclusive content and special offers like discounts, Shelepin explains.

Shelepin acknowledges that businesses won’t realize success in the digital realm overnight, but stresses that success is possible to achieve.

“It’s important to maintain consistency, in creating content and engaging on media platforms, as building an online presence takes time,” Shelepin concludes. “By adhering to these strategies, small businesses can cultivate a strong digital presence, enabling them to thrive in today’s competitive landscape.”

Source link

Keep an eye on what we are doing
Be the first to get latest updates and exclusive content straight to your email inbox.
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Invalid email address
Continue Reading

SOCIAL

LinkedIn Expands ID Verification to More Regions

Published

on

LinkedIn Expands ID Verification to More Regions

LinkedIn continues to expand its own identity verification offering, via a new partnership with Persona which will enable users in more regions to confirm their ID in the app.

As you can see in this sequence, with LinkedIn’s new ID verification process, users in certain regions now able to confirm their ID documents with Persona, in order get a verification badge added to your LinkedIn profile, which confirms that you’ve uploaded and verified your government ID with one of LinkedIn’s partner providers.

LinkedIn Persona ID confirmation

You can see the verified icon next to my profile name in the second image, which adds another level of assurance that I am, in fact, a real human being, with a government ID linked to my identity.

LinkedIn initially launched ID verification for users in the U.S. back in April, via a partnership with identity platform CLEAR, which is best known for providing faster check-in at airports. LinkedIn then expanded its CLEAR partnership to enable users in Canada and Mexico to also confirm their documents, with this new partnership providing the ID confirmation option to a lot more users.

As per LinkedIn:

In Argentina, Australia, Bangladesh, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Indonesia, Kenya, Malaysia, Morocco, Nigeria, Peru, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, the identity verification is performed by Persona, a third-party identity verification service. It’s available in each country for those with a valid NFC-enable passport.”

(Note: It may not be available to all users in all of these regions as yet)

So, the requirement is that you need a government-issued passport, with an NFC chip, and a means to scan that chip in as part of the process, though Persona notes that “if you’ve ever used your phone to tap for payment, then it is NFC-enabled”.

So now, a lot more LinkedIn users will be able to confirm their identity, and add an extra layer of assurance to their profile, helping to let people know that they are dealing with an actual person, and that your information is more likely to be legit.

And given the latest advances in generative AI, and LinkedIn’s rising push to add generative AI tools into every aspect of its platform, it does seem like this could become an essential step, as more bot profiles and personas get added to social apps.

That’s been part of the justification for X’s broader push on ID verification, which has now stretched to charging new users in some regions a small fee to interact in the app.

X owner Elon Musk has repeatedly noted the rising risk of AI-enabled bots taking over social apps, with user payments, in his view, being the only way to stop them. But LinkedIn’s trying another approach, and it does seem like providing free ID confirmation will be more widely adopted, which could make it more effective in this respect.

And by outsourcing the actual verification element to a third party, it’s also less labor intensive, though it does also mean that another group is involved, which can make some feel a little uneasy about sharing their documentation and selfies.

Still, it’s a pretty simple process, and it’s free, and if LinkedIn starts putting more emphasis on verified accounts, by say, ranking them higher in search results, that could get a lot more people taking it up, and adding a gray tick.

The other question then is what do CLEAR and Persona get out of this deal?

In both cases these ID platforms get more data, with users also required to open a CLEAR account when confirming their info via its system. Persona will also take in some user data, which will expand its database, though you can opt out of letting either company keep your info in perpetuity.

Persona also notes that it will generate “facial geometries for both the image obtained from your government ID and the user submitted selfie”, which it will then use in its analysis with your ID to confirm your info, though Persona won’t keep your geometric data on file.

Essentially, you’re going to have to trust your ID data with another company, which not everyone will be comfortable with. But if you’re okay with it, again, the process is easy, and it could add some extra assurance to your LinkedIn presence.

You can learn more about LinkedIn’s ID confirmation options here.

Source link

Keep an eye on what we are doing
Be the first to get latest updates and exclusive content straight to your email inbox.
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Invalid email address
Continue Reading

SOCIAL

Ad Spend Wasted On Invalid Traffic Could Reach $72B In 2024 11/28/2023

Published

on

Ad Spend Wasted On Invalid Traffic Could Reach $72B In 2024 11/28/2023

The latest analysis of the effects of
invalid traffic/IVT estimates that the problem will result in $72.37 billion in wasted ad spend in 2024 — up 33% from an estimated $54.63 billion wasted in 2022.

The report, from marketing efficiency platform Lunio, was based on an analysis of 2.6 …



Source link

Keep an eye on what we are doing
Be the first to get latest updates and exclusive content straight to your email inbox.
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Invalid email address
Continue Reading

Trending