According to a just-released Pew survey, 48% of adults sometimes or often get their news from social media. The reason this plan is so disturbing is because Facebook is one of the primary places Americans get their news. But a spokesman also seemed to suggest it was making a change, telling the Times, “people deserve to know the steps we’re taking to address the different issues facing our company – and we’re going to share those steps widely.” The company told the Times it hadn’t changed its approach. The Times reports the initiative was personally approved in August by chief executive Mark Zuckerberg. The plan is downright alarming and underscores the importance of seeking out news outside of social platforms.Īccording to the Times, Facebook plans to show users more articles that make it look good – including some written by its own employees. If certain favorable stories are given priority, that by definition leaves less space for more objective reporting to be shared in news feeds, since users can only read a finite number of stories each time they log on. The company now plans to show users more positive articles about itself in news feeds, using what is known as Project Amplify, according to The New York Times, citing as sources three people with knowledge of the effort. But you should also be worried that Facebook has developed a way to lessen the chance that you’ll hear about such criticisms of the platform in the future.
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