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Treat Facebook Like Big Tobacco

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Re: Treat Facebook Like Big Tobacco

#91
post #89

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Spot on analysis! "Human progress has never been shaped by commentators, complainers or cynics." To me, facebook is this amazing place where I get to stay in touch with all my friends and family, get to plan events with them, laugh about cat gifs and live through the highs and lows of life together. So much good has happened to me through facebook...friends, jobs, love (I met my wife on FB). And the fact that every d…

Sure, no one's upset that you met your wife on Facebook. We're upset about the malicious psychological experiments, spying on teens, them enabling discrimination, election manipulation and genocide, shadow profiles, etc. You've either not been paying attention the last 10 years, or the answer to the question in the other reply must be "hell yes and proud of it".

> spying on teens

Worth noting that "the app was targeted to users ages 13 to 35 (5 percent of whom were teenagers)." [0]

Google had a similar app. I don't think that makes Facebook's app better, but it's interesting how the media reports on the Facebook app and not the Google one.

[0] https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2019/01/facebook-and-google-...

Re: Treat Facebook Like Big Tobacco

#92
post #88
post #55

First, you need to look at human attention as a commodity just like gold - available in fixed quantity and everyone wants piece of it. It turns out that FB managed to conquer large portion of human attention after it emerged. This also meant massive attention transfer from news media to FB. However until year ago, FB benevolently gave back significant pie of its attention share to news media by heavily promoting thei…

You offer no proof, citations, anything at all to back it up. But let's assume it's true, in the end it remains a mildly interesting but utterly irrelevant analysis. Who cares why news organisations attack Facebook as long as the criticism is correct? Facebook has done so many wicked things, the articles basically write themselves.

But people dont care at all. 90% of people at least. Its not a winnable war

Re: Treat Facebook Like Big Tobacco

#93
post #88
post #55

First, you need to look at human attention as a commodity just like gold - available in fixed quantity and everyone wants piece of it. It turns out that FB managed to conquer large portion of human attention after it emerged. This also meant massive attention transfer from news media to FB. However until year ago, FB benevolently gave back significant pie of its attention share to news media by heavily promoting thei…

You offer no proof, citations, anything at all to back it up. But let's assume it's true, in the end it remains a mildly interesting but utterly irrelevant analysis. Who cares why news organisations attack Facebook as long as the criticism is correct? Facebook has done so many wicked things, the articles basically write themselves.

https://www.wired.com/story/facebook-mark-zuckerberg-15-mont...

Re: Treat Facebook Like Big Tobacco

#94
post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Spot on analysis! "Human progress has never been shaped by commentators, complainers or cynics." To me, facebook is this amazing place where I get to stay in touch with all my friends and family, get to plan events with them, laugh about cat gifs and live through the highs and lows of life together. So much good has happened to me through facebook...friends, jobs, love (I met my wife on FB). And the fact that every d…

Curious, do you work for Facebook?

His post history certainly comes off like a complete shill.

Re: Treat Facebook Like Big Tobacco

#95
post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Spot on analysis! "Human progress has never been shaped by commentators, complainers or cynics." To me, facebook is this amazing place where I get to stay in touch with all my friends and family, get to plan events with them, laugh about cat gifs and live through the highs and lows of life together. So much good has happened to me through facebook...friends, jobs, love (I met my wife on FB). And the fact that every d…

Curious, do you work for Facebook?

Nope

Re: Treat Facebook Like Big Tobacco

#96
post #5

I think it's a good (if inflammatory) analogy: in both cases, people are aware, in the abstract, of dangers, but systematically underestimate them by a big margin. People knew "smoking is bad for you", but didn't appreciate how bad. People know "Facebook violates privacy" but not the depth of the profile they've made on you across numerous websites. People know "You shouldn't compare yourself to others and feel bad a…

One important area where the analogy doesn't work: smoking can't be done safely in moderation. Some people have trouble stopping themselves from going too far with Facebook. For example, comparing themselves to others, obsessively spending time, sharing things they shouldn't, or getting dragged into drama and fights. But for others it's entirely possible to just get on Facebook occasionally, discuss innocuous stuff,…

>One important area where the analogy doesn't work: smoking can't be done safely in moderation.

Really? What are the health effects of one cigarette per month?

Re: Treat Facebook Like Big Tobacco

#97
post #55

First, you need to look at human attention as a commodity just like gold - available in fixed quantity and everyone wants piece of it. It turns out that FB managed to conquer large portion of human attention after it emerged. This also meant massive attention transfer from news media to FB. However until year ago, FB benevolently gave back significant pie of its attention share to news media by heavily promoting thei…

Spot on analysis! "Human progress has never been shaped by commentators, complainers or cynics." To me, facebook is this amazing place where I get to stay in touch with all my friends and family, get to plan events with them, laugh about cat gifs and live through the highs and lows of life together. So much good has happened to me through facebook...friends, jobs, love (I met my wife on FB). And the fact that every d…

It also affects your mental health negatively when you are constantly bombarded by the highlight reels of all your acquaintances and start comparing yourself subconsciously.

Oh let's not forget the actual user manipulation:

https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2014/06/every...

But few users expect that Facebook would change their News Feed in order to manipulate their emotional state."

Re: Treat Facebook Like Big Tobacco

#98
post #97

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Spot on analysis! "Human progress has never been shaped by commentators, complainers or cynics." To me, facebook is this amazing place where I get to stay in touch with all my friends and family, get to plan events with them, laugh about cat gifs and live through the highs and lows of life together. So much good has happened to me through facebook...friends, jobs, love (I met my wife on FB). And the fact that every d…

It also affects your mental health negatively when you are constantly bombarded by the highlight reels of all your acquaintances and start comparing yourself subconsciously. Oh let's not forget the actual user manipulation: https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2014/06/every... But few users expect that Facebook would change their News Feed in order to manipulate their emotional state."

Can you cite actual peer reviewed research to back that claim...because I have yet to read anything that’s not a simple opinion piece!

Because intuitively I don’t buy it!

I am sure some people can be exposed to content on Facebook that affects their mental health negatively ...but compared to what? Reading the New York Times also affects people’s mental health negatively but we are also not comparing them to big tabacco!

Re: Treat Facebook Like Big Tobacco

#99
post #89

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Spot on analysis! "Human progress has never been shaped by commentators, complainers or cynics." To me, facebook is this amazing place where I get to stay in touch with all my friends and family, get to plan events with them, laugh about cat gifs and live through the highs and lows of life together. So much good has happened to me through facebook...friends, jobs, love (I met my wife on FB). And the fact that every d…

Sure, no one's upset that you met your wife on Facebook. We're upset about the malicious psychological experiments, spying on teens, them enabling discrimination, election manipulation and genocide, shadow profiles, etc. You've either not been paying attention the last 10 years, or the answer to the question in the other reply must be "hell yes and proud of it".

Can you cite factual sources for your claims?

Cause all I see in the news everyday are opinion pieces and hyperbole

Re: Treat Facebook Like Big Tobacco

#100

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Some might argue a form of figurative brain cancer.

What does that even mean, in concrete terms? How does it affect my health, and what causal evidence is there to support that link?

Well, I think the answer to your question is the word figurative in my post.
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