Facebook Admits Social Media Can Have A Negative Impact On Democracy
- 6 years ago
In a series of online posts, Facebook recently admitted that social media can have a negative impact on democracy.
Facebook acknowledged on Monday that social media can have a negative impact on democracy, reports the Washington Post. As part of its 'Hard Questions' series, the site published a number of posts regarding the platform's impacts on elections, politics, and perceptions. In one, Katie Harbath, Facebook's director of global politics and government outreach, writes, "From the Arab Spring to robust elections around the globe, social media seemed like a positive." "The last US presidential campaign changed that, with foreign interference that Facebook should have been quicker to identify to the rise of 'fake news' and echo chambers," Harbath further commented. Plans moving forward include surveying people about which news sources they deem most reliable and changing feeds at large to focus more on friends and family, reports The Verge. Cass R. Sunstein, a Harvard Law School professor, featured as a guest commentator in Facebook's social media and democracy series, questions if either of those moves will make a significant impact in how people consume and react to shared information regarding politics. He notes that Facebook's efforts to provide each user with "the most personalized experience," is, "from the standpoint of democracy…a nightmare." Exposure to information outside of one's comfort zone, says the professor, can "ensure against fragmentation, polarization, and extremism, which are predictable outcomes of any situation in which like-minded people speak only with themselves." Facebook acknowledges that, though it is going to try, it may not be able to fully stanch the flow of "fake news." Samidh Chakrabarti, the company's manager of civic engagement, notes, "Even with all these countermeasures, the battle will never end."
Facebook acknowledged on Monday that social media can have a negative impact on democracy, reports the Washington Post. As part of its 'Hard Questions' series, the site published a number of posts regarding the platform's impacts on elections, politics, and perceptions. In one, Katie Harbath, Facebook's director of global politics and government outreach, writes, "From the Arab Spring to robust elections around the globe, social media seemed like a positive." "The last US presidential campaign changed that, with foreign interference that Facebook should have been quicker to identify to the rise of 'fake news' and echo chambers," Harbath further commented. Plans moving forward include surveying people about which news sources they deem most reliable and changing feeds at large to focus more on friends and family, reports The Verge. Cass R. Sunstein, a Harvard Law School professor, featured as a guest commentator in Facebook's social media and democracy series, questions if either of those moves will make a significant impact in how people consume and react to shared information regarding politics. He notes that Facebook's efforts to provide each user with "the most personalized experience," is, "from the standpoint of democracy…a nightmare." Exposure to information outside of one's comfort zone, says the professor, can "ensure against fragmentation, polarization, and extremism, which are predictable outcomes of any situation in which like-minded people speak only with themselves." Facebook acknowledges that, though it is going to try, it may not be able to fully stanch the flow of "fake news." Samidh Chakrabarti, the company's manager of civic engagement, notes, "Even with all these countermeasures, the battle will never end."