A Look At The Lost Promise Of Social Media, And Where We Go From Here
By Kirt Zimmer
As a social media marketing professional, my “Super Bowl” is an event called Social Media Marketing World. It’s an extension of Social Media Examiner, both entities being the brainchild of Michael Stelzner. His keynote is always a thoughtful look at information I’m already familiar with, frankly, but he arranges social media news in such a way that we can better see the future.
One thing Stelzner regularly reminds us is that Facebook CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, is very clear about where the largest social media network in the world (2.23 billion monthly active users) is heading. Zuck tells us, and then he does it. So, his comments are worthy of scrutiny.
First, a little context around Facebook’s history might be useful.
Facebook began as an open platform. It didn’t take long, however, for Facebook to tighten things up in an attempt to put the squeeze on competitors. Remember when you posted a YouTube link and were surprised to find that virtually nobody saw it? That’s because Facebook didn’t like people leaving its app and changed its algorithm to favor native uploads.
Soon thereafter, Facebook encouraged publishers to share their content directly on the platform, via Instant Articles. They argued that publishing natively, instead of linking to another site, would mean faster load times and a better user experience. Many publishers jumped on board and later jumped off when it didn’t advance their own monetization strategies.
The history of Facebook is a story of new functionality aimed at taking market share from other tech behemoths like Yelp, Craigslist, Snapchat, LinkedIn, Netflix, YouTube, etc. This evolution has only involved the interests of users when also including revenue gains. Long story short, Facebook is not your friend, unless your friends consistently use you for their own benefit.
Sadly, success breeds imitation, and other social media networks are often pulled in Facebook’s wake. The once thrilling promise of social media to change the world — to bring down corrupt governments, even! — has devolved into unimpeded hate speech and a furthering of the gap between social classes. No wonder users are beginning to take “digital detoxes” and find respite in the real world.
But, at this point, we’re all shamelessly addicted to social media. So where is it going? Let’s see what ol’ Zuck says:
“I believe the future of communication will increasingly shift to private, encrypted services where people can be confident what they say to each other stays secure and their messages and content won’t stick around forever.”
Zuckerberg’s “privacy manifesto” has the whiff of a juggernaut trying to avoid government regulation more than a tech company that really cares about its users. That said, Facebook’s interest in privacy and encryption can only be a good thing for the further advancement of blockchain technology. The question is whether that technology will be used in an ethical way.
Facebook says it’s about “meaningful social interactions” now. They claim to be reducing the visibility of viral videos, discouraging passive consumption. Yet the top video in my Facebook Watch area today is a toxic thing about Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez supposedly getting “owned” by Congressman Jim Jordan. (She wasn’t, but that’s another article.) Seems like the algorithm still supports divisive language that baits sharing and views along partisan lines. Boy, thanks for the “meaningful social interaction,” CEO Zuckerberg!
Maybe it’s time for a new wave of technology companies to create open but secure platforms that support the actual needs of users. Facebook’s credibility on these issues passed a long time ago.
I’m watching the Mobs team build a platform that will allow people to share their content with others, to be compensated for their content via secure blockchain contracts, and for marketers to find user-generated content that is authentic and affordable. I’m seeing their genuine interest in solving pain points for both individuals and businesses. They’re just not interested in selling user data to third parties who then pass it along to malevolent dictators who then use it to meddle in foreign elections. What a breath of fresh air!
Maybe it’s time we stop reading the tea leaves in Zuck’s comments and see what new entrepreneurs have to say:
“There are so many opportunities technology provides to bring people together in true community,” says Mobs CEO Raquel Hernandez Schafhauser. “We’re looking forward to encouraging active collaboration and solving the pain points that earlier iterations of technology created. The solutions we provide need to serve the average person, and restore their faith that technology can do more good than harm.”
That’s the kind of vision that gets me excited about social media once again.
