On the same day when Facebook announced a name change to Meta, Reggae legend Ziggy Marley has weighed in on Facebook’s current branding and social problem with some timely advice. The multiple Grammy winner took to Instagram to let ‘Zuck’ know that consciousness is the way to go.
He posted an image with the words, “Hey @zuck get your algorithm to push the conscious s#!t”. He also tagged Zuckerberg @instagram, @Facebook and #agorithms.
His comments come as Facebook and its CEO Mark Zuckerberg are facing serious backlash following a data leak recently where it was revealed, among other things that the company failed to attract teens and halt the spread of misinformation other harmful content, per Bloomberg.
The data leak report stated that, Under the guidance of Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook created a quagmire with hate — “while frequently posting lavish sales and profit gains” — while at the same time failed to find tools that are useful for building communities and make the world a more harmonious paces.
Former Facebook product manager Frances Haugen revealed herself as the whistleblower who leaked all the documents with tens of thousands of pages of internal company research, per Washington Post.
As she revealed her identity in a CBS interview she said “There were conflicts of interest between what was good for the public and what’s good for Facebook.”
She further confirmed what many were already speculating stated, “Facebook chooses over and over again to optimize what is for its own interest like making more money.”
“They are just optimizing for content that gets engagement or reaction, but its own research is showing that content that is hateful, that is divisive, that is polarizing is easier to inspire people to anger than it is to other emotions.” The Data Scientist turned Advocate lamented.
“Facebook has realized that if they changed the algorithm to be safe people will spend less time on the site, they’ll click on less ads, they’ll make less money”, She revealed.
Her clarifications correlate to the damning points from the Facebook data leak which shows that the company has been negligent in eliminating violence, misinformation and other harmful content from its services, and that it has misled investors about these efforts. Per Washington Post.
Recently, it was reported that Mark Zuckerberg personally agreed to comply with demands from Vietnam’s ruling Communist Party to censor anti-government dissidents or risk getting knocked offline in one of Facebook’s most lucrative Asian markets, per Washington Post.
Facebook also plays a role in how elections are won across the world and The Verge reported that with this tremendous power to sway democracy and choose world leaders Facebook prioritizes the U.S., India and Brazil while other countries get very little automatic protection.
A few days after there was a global Facebook blackout Haugen addressed the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science & Transportation, where she said, “I am here today because I believe Facebook’s products harm children, stoke division and weaken our democracy.”
She further stated, “The company’s leadership knows how to make Facebook and Instagram safer but won’t make the necessary changes because they have put their astronomical profits before people.”
Founded in 2004, as of this year Facebook is one of the few trillion dollar companies in the world with more than 2.8 billion monthly active users, including more than 195 million in the U.S. and Canada.
In a release today Facebook said “The metaverse is the next evolution of social connection. It’s a collective project that will be created by people all over the world, and open to everyone. You’ll be able to socialize, learn, collaborate and play in ways that go beyond what’s possible today.”
