What to expect from Facebook’s new media strategy?

The Day 1 Fireside Chat at the GEN Summit 2019 was indeed fiery. Jesper Doub, Director of News Partnerships, Facebook EMEA and Matt Kelly, Editor-in-Chief at The New European and chief content officer for Archant Group, discussed the complicated relationship between Facebook and news organizations.

Doub promised an eager crowd that Facebook is seeking new business models to work with publishers — one that will offer newsrooms fair compensation. “Facebook looms large in the thinking of publishers of all sizes. The relationship has not always seemed balanced, but in the past year the platform has demonstrated a willingness to understand and engage with publishers,” Doub said.

Replying to a question about algorithms, Doub argued “the algorithm does not necessarily support the view that a publisher would have on what an audience should read. The algorithm is a ranking mechanism that helps you shift through all the potential posts you could look on one day. The algorithm ranks from a user’s perspective, what the user will most likely want to read.”

Kelly and the crowd didn’t take it easy on Doub, and asked about Facebook’s response to the spread of disinformation on the platform, especially in small and developing countries, where the company does not have people on the ground. Doub said that they are trying to improve ways that people from these countries can get in contact with them. “what makes it harder is that we face more and more ethical questions but we should not face them alone. We do need experts, journalists, lawmakers, scientists to collaborate and to come up with solutions. We need to have a broader regulation about what is allowed or not and how we can deal with harmful content.”