Facebook: A Source of Reliable Information.
March 7, 2022
I believe everything I read online. Here’s a good example, which I pulled from the money hungry click addict BBC:
Facebook’s president of global affairs, Nick Clegg, said that “soon millions of ordinary Russians will find themselves cut off from reliable information“.
I know I thing of Facebook as providing great content for eight and nine year olds. I know Facebook is capable of dogooderness. I know that Facebook is trying really hard to be as wonderful as possible.
But I don’t think of Facebook as a source of “reliable information.”
This extraordinary characterization of Facebook as a source of “reliable information” appears in the BBC article “Facebook Hits Out at Russia Blocking Its Platforms.” Imagine, a country engaged in a special action which terminates with extreme prejudice young and old having the unmitigated gall to block Zuckbook, er, Facebook.
The write up reports:
The statement says the block on Facebook platforms has been introduced “to prevent violations of the key principles of the free flow of information”.
This is a battle of euphemisms and New Speak. Quite a pair of global powers, Facebook and Russia.
I love that “reliable information” angle. I suppose that is what Dozhd TV channel and Ekho Moskvy radio executives said too.
Stephen E Arnold, March 7, 2022
A Meta Burger Surprise? Nope, Seems Like a Standard Operating Procedure
March 3, 2022
I love the thinking of high school science club managers. I think I have spotted an example clearly spelled out in “Facebook Misled Investors on Scope of Misinformation Problems, Whistleblower Says.” The key point seems to be that Meta (maybe meat) says one thing and does another — often with world class ineptitude.
The write up states:
Haugen’s new complaints say that while Facebook/Meta executives trumpeted their efforts to tamp down misinformation about climate change and COVID in earnings calls and elsewhere, internally, the company knew it was falling short.
The saying one thing and doing another approach is okay until a certain someone steps forward and says, “Not so fast.” That someone is Frances Haugen, the former Facebooker turned whistle blower. The secret is that Meta (maybe meat) could not chop liver.
I loved this approach to grilling the Meta outfit:
Using whistleblower complaints to address the misinformation problem is “creative,” Nathaniel Persily, a professor at Stanford Law School and director of the Stanford Cyber Policy Center, told The Washington Post. “You cannot pass a law in the US banning disinformation,” he said. “So what can you do? You can hold the platforms accountable to promises they make. Those promises could be made to users, to the government, to shareholders.” The strategy could work, given many investors’ appetites for focusing on environmental, social, and governance investment strategies (so-called ESG investors). For years, the SEC has told publicly traded companies that they need to make clear and accurate disclosures, Jane Norberg, a partner at Arnold & Porter who recently ran the SEC’s whistleblower program, told the Post. “If the company says one thing to investors but internal documents show that what they were saying is untrue, that could be something the SEC would look at,” she said.
Would the head Meta person pull a sophomoric stunt like obfuscate, fiddle with words, and prevaricate?
Yep, just like 14 years olds explaining the chemistry experiment was not intended to blow up the lab table.
Stephen E Arnold,March 3, 2022
Facebook: Irish Troubles
February 24, 2022
When I think of Ireland, here’s what comes to mind:
- A really weird street with jazzy murals and a penchant for violence
- Uplifting novels by Ken Bruen
- Potatoes
- The craic
After reading “Facebook Receives Bad News That Could Disrupt Its Business,” I am now thinking big money changing hands. The write up explains:
“We issued our decision [regarding trans border data] to Meta yesterday. And we have given them 28 days to come back to us with any comments they have. And at that stage we will prepare our draft decision and send our draft decision to our colleague data protection authorities in the EU and I expect that to happen in April,” Doyle [Irish Data Protection spokes person] said. The stakes are high: if the Meta is prohibited from transferring information, its activities in Europe will be very strongly affected.
Implications? Meat — sorry, I meant Meta, formerly the Zuckbook — has one more issue to ponder. Oscar Wilde noted:
“Experience is merely the name men gave to their mistakes.”
Perhaps a VR headset will improve the Emerald Isle real world experience?
Stephen E Arnold, February 24, 2022
Facebook Now Has a Counterfeits Problem
February 24, 2022
Purveyors of counterfeit goods know how to adapt. Fake luxury products moved heavily online first through eBay then through Amazon. Now certain aspects of social media platforms seem to have enticed such vendors in another direction. Gadgets Now describes “How Facebook and Instagram May Have ‘Fake Shopping’ Problem.” The article reports:
“Facebook owner Meta Platforms is struggling to stop counterfeiters from pushing fake luxury goods from Gucci to Chanel across its social media apps, according to research and interviews, as the company barrels into ecommerce. Its platforms have emerged as hot spots for counterfeit offenders who exploit their range of social and private messaging tools to reach users, according to interviews with academics, industry groups and counterfeit investigators, who likened brands’ attempts at policing services like Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp as a game of ‘whack-a-mole. ‘Facebook and Instagram are the key marketplaces where counterfeit goods get sold to members of the public. It used to be eBay 10 years ago, and Amazon five years ago,’ said Benedict Hamilton, and managing director at Kroll, a private investigation company hired by brands hurt by counterfeiting and smuggling.”
The write-up cites a recent report (PDF) from Italian analytics firm Ghost Data that found over 26,000 active counterfeiter accounts on Facebook and more than 20,000 on Instagram (also Meta-owned) between June and October 2021. Meta has prioritized ecommerce as a way to counter revenue drains like changes to targeted ads and flat user growth. But now it must placate regulators over this related issue. We learn:
“Meta has joined ecommerce sites and online marketplaces in grappling with the sale of counterfeit goods. But unlike public listings on sites dedicated to shopping like eBay and Amazon.com, social platforms also provide offenders multiple channels to post in closed spaces, send private messages and use disappearing content like Instagram Stories, experts said.”
See the write-up for more on the fight against counterfeit merchandise. We wonder—will the emphasis on ecommerce will really pay off for Meta, or will it become another front for criticism? Perhaps both.
Cynthia Murrell, February 24, 2022
No Vacay in Tigray for Zuckbookers This Year
February 22, 2022
I am skeptical of accusations which arrive from outfits which may not be too fond of the Meta thing. “Facebook Lets Vigilantes in Ethiopia Incite Ethnic Killing” reports:
Analysis by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism (TBIJ) and the Observer found Facebook is still letting users post content inciting violence through hate and misinformation. This is despite being aware it helps directly fuel tensions, prompting claims of inaction and indifference against the social media giant. The investigation tracked down relatives who have linked Facebook posts to the killings of loved ones. One senior member of Ethiopia’s media accused the firm of “standing by and watching the country fall apart”.
This “standing by and watching the country fall apart” is interesting. My hunch is that Facebook is thinking about the metaverse. Does this mean Facebook’s management has its head in a VR headset or somewhere else? A meeting with lawyers? A conversation with an important stakeholder concerned about the billions spent on the Meta pivot? A chat with a former board member who moved toward a dating app?
Definitely nothing thinking about lunch in Tigray.
Stephen E Arnold, February 22, 2022
First Apple, Then the Google, and Now a Young Person: Facebook Faces Phrastic Fault Finding
February 21, 2022
I am not sure I fully understand “What Does A Platform Look Like When It’s Dying?” The write up strikes me as somewhat mean spirited. Name a bad thing Facebook has done? Used corrosive information flows to rip apart social structures? Hey, what about the tweeter thing?
Created a marketplace for contraband? Hey, the Dark Web has been in that game for a decade.
Fostered human trafficking and child sex crime? Definitely not a pioneer in this area.
Overall the Facebook or Zuckbook is a manifestation of what’s possible online: Monopolies, ecosystems of idiosyncratic behavior like “No, you can’t change your icons”, and getting paid anytime a user or an advertiser clicks. Online is a fine, tidy, well-lit place (sorry, Ernest, I can’t do the “lighted” word form).
The write up states:
Well, two days ago, Meta, which is what Facebook calls itself now for some reason, tried to hold a post-Super Bowl Foo Fighters concert in its new VR platform that no one wants, but users couldn’t figure out how to actually access it and the ones that did said it looked like shit and sucked. Also, yesterday, Mark Zuckerberg announced that Facebook’s corporate values now include the bizarre tagline “Meta, metamates, me.” And over on Instagram, Reels, the video feed on Meta’s once-cool photo app, is filling up with silent auto-playing one-second video memes everyone hates. Meanwhile, TikTok’s owner ByteDance reported last month that their 2021 sales grew by 70%. So, you know, you connect the dots there.
I think this means that the China-linked TikTok is the big dog of social media and video now.
Bad for Facebook? Yep. Bad for YouTube? Yep. Bad for identifying susceptible individuals who can be coerced to cooperate with a foreign power? Nope.
Stephen E Arnold, February 21, 2022
The Metazuck Shuts Down Iranian Accounts Posing as Scottish Nationalists
February 17, 2022
Here we have an all-too-rare case of Facebook (Meta) taking action against imposter accounts. Yahoo Finance reports, “Facebook Takes Down Fake Iranian Accounts that Posed as Scottish Locals.” The network in question, however, had not been particularly effective at influencing its target audience. Though the eight Facebook and 126 Instagram accounts had 77,000 followers between them, the most popular one only garnered 4,000 followers, and only half of those were actually located in the UK. We suppose even small victories can be used for PR purposes.
We are told the fake Scots were firm supporters of Scottish independence and critical of the UK government. The creators of these false accounts may have expected more bang for their rial, for they put in an unusual amount of effort to make them seem real. Reporter Karissa Bell writes:
“In a call with reporters, Facebook’s Global IO Threat Intelligence Lead, Ben Nimmo, said that it’s not the first time the company has caught Iran-linked fake accounts targeting Scotland, but that the latest network stood out for its ‘artisanal’ approach to the fake personas. ‘What was unique about this case was the effort that the operators took to make their fakes look like real people,’ Nimmo said. He noted the accounts spent considerable time posting about their ‘side interests,’ like football, in an attempt to boost their credibility. Some of the accounts also lifted profile photos from real celebrities or media personalities, and regularly updated the images in order to appear more real. Other accounts used fake photos generated by AI programs.”
That is a lot of effort to foment a bit of unrest in a corner of the UK. We wonder what else these imposters are up to and what they have planned for the future.
Cynthia Murrell, February 17, 2021
Facebook Gets a Bad Wrap: Analysis That Is
February 16, 2022
I read the Wrap’s “Why Facebook and Mark Zuckerberg Are Boxed In: Analysis.” (There’s a paywall in place, gentle reader.) My take on the write up is that Facebook has been boxed out by three interesting factors: [a] It is a product designed for college students circa 2004. These “objects of attention” in the early incarnations of the social network are now nosing into their 40s. The parents of these millennials or whatever the cohort is called have discovered Facebook. The silver citizens are definitely checking out grandkiddies via the ‘Book.
[b] The Facebook brand has morphed into Zuckbook or Meta or some crisis PR firm’s vision of smooth sailing into a safe harbor. Not many firms have the distinction of being viewed as a digital embodiment of the chemically infused Love Canal.
[c] Yeah, TikTok. Algorithms, short videos, and the benign Hoovering of data about users. And a China connection too. As sensitive as the Zuck’s radar has been, he appears to have zucked up.
The write up in Wrap takes a complementary view; for example:
Additionally, even if Zuckerberg succeeds in building a business ecosystem around the metaverse, the company will have to figure out an advertising model without relying on targeted ads. There are also consumer safety and security concerns that have not been addressed, and while it rebranded to Meta last October, Facebook is still strongly associated with its image.
Yep, the Apple move to eunuchize the Zuck was a sharp swipe at the Zuckbook.
Ouch.
Stephen E Arnold, February 16, 2022
Pardner, We Never Meta an Outfit with Which We Could Not Litigate
February 15, 2022
TikTok is expanding in Europe. The Zuckbook is threatening to pull out of Europe. Good or bad? Here’s an easier question: Can Texas get billions out of Meta (aka Zuckbook) for alleged misuse of facial recognition?
My hunch is that TikTok in Europe is bad. Texas winning some type of Zuckbook cash output is badder.
“Texas Sues Meta, Saying It Misused Facial Recognition Data” reports:
The suit involves Facebook’s “tag suggestions” feature, which the company ended last year, that used facial recognition to encourage users to link the photo to a friend’s profile. Paxton [Texas Attorney General] alleged the company collected facial recognition data without their consent, shared it with third parties, and did not destroy the information in a timely manner — all in violation of state law.
What’s interesting is that there are other AGs who may want to monitor this legal matter. If the Zuckbook avoids a Super Bowl fine, that’s okay. There are probably other technical fish to fry at the social media out.
But…
If the Texas AG prevails, how many other states will ask a couple of bright eyed and busy tailed lawyers to see if similar actions took place in their state?
I can name a couple. Can Meta, or is the Zuckbook team too busy trying to figure out how to deal with what one might call headwinds?
Worth watching Mr. Paxton’s interest in Meta I think.
Stephen E Arnold, February 15, 2022
Facebook Has Dictator-Like Control Of Platform
February 9, 2022
Russia is not shy when it comes to criticism. Russians usually target rival governments and politicians, but when they are driven it is not odd for a company or business leader to be in their critical crosshairs. Sputnik News is a Russian news service and it criticized Facebook for blocking it: “Muting Sputnik Arabic: Facebook Control Is Something Any Dictator Would Dream Of, Analysts Say.”
It is ironic that Facebook, a US-based company, where the first amendment in the Constitution’s Bill of Rights guarantees the right to freedom of speech, blocked the Arabic account of a Russian news outlet. If you did not catch the ironic bit, Russian is the former Soviet Union and as a socialist country it censored any undesirable information. Facebook Concierge Support did not explain why it blocked Sputnik’s Arabic account other than there was “potential non-compliance.” The Sputnik Arabic account has never been blocked, but some of its post have been flagged for “violating community standards.”
Facebook has silenced ideas it does not agree with in the past and this is yet another example of them doing it again. Facebook does not care about remaining neutral, the company only cares about its bottom line and controlling information.
Facebook whistleblower Ryan Hartwig said:
“ ‘The message from Facebook is clear: they have carte blanche to interfere in elections, influence politics, and control the news that Middle Easterners can be exposed to,’ Hartwig highlights. ‘This type of unilateral control of news and propaganda is only something dictators have dreamed of, and it’s being foisted on sovereign countries in the Middle East.’ According to the whistleblower, Facebook’s conduct is “extremely dangerous” because the platform is used by a substantial portion of netizens. ‘Free speech essentially doesn’t exist for the 3 billion users of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp,’ Hartwig stresses.
Facebook is a platform and a medium of discourse. It does not have the right to enact censoring in order to control the narrative. Instead Facebook is taking center stage in censorship as well as purporting that state-linked media is bad while privately owned social media is good.
Fortunately Facebook is already viewed as a toxic brand and younger generations see it as dated and meant for Baby Boomers. Facebook continues to control an interest in the media narrative, but time will erode its hold. It is too bad we have to wait for Facebook to lose its grip, but congratulations to Zuckerberg for drawing criticism from Russia! That is one heck of an accomplishment!
Whitney Grace, February 9, 2022
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