Can Facebook's algorithm be improved?

Salem Ghebremedhin

Facebook has the greatest engagement of any social media site, which makes the corporation billions of revenues, but it is also linked to some of the company's biggest problems involving its algorithm. 

Following Frances Hagen's testimony before reporters and Congress, the public and media blamed the algorithm for the spread of disinformation and inflammatory content. Facebook has also been accused of sensitizing users and failing to safeguard them from some of the site's most graphic content.

If the algorithm is to blame, can Facebook change the algorithm to make it better?

Sharing and re-sharing are important ways for Facebook to bring engaging material into users' news feeds. It is a mechanism that enables material to circulate around Facebook and reach users who would not otherwise see it; this is how viral content is created.

As a result, limiting the quantity of re-sharing acts as a speed bump, slowing down harmful content such as disinformation, hate speech, or extreme content before it gets viral.    

Facebook may also improve their algorithm by detecting people who have regularly posted deceptive information and demoting all of their future posts, regardless of the topic.

Meanwhile, Facebook may attempt to improve their algorithm so that it prioritizes material that users are likely to consider 'good for the society.' Facebook may do this by leveraging input from the comment section to educate the algorithm to prioritize only necessary information for people.

Congress has been debating how and if to regulate Facebook and other key social media platforms such as Twitter, TikTok, Snapchat, and YouTube since October 5, 2021. The legislature has also expressed concerns about Big Teck across the political spectrum, particularly over the platform's negative impact on society, specifically on teenagers.

Not just Congress, but also social scientists, past and present Facebook employees, policymakers, and other Facebook users are thinking about the problems the company is responsible for and how to address them.

Many are calling for the abolition of Section 230, a rule that protects tech corporations from legal liability for the real-world harm that their users might create with the information they post on their platforms. 

Section 230 reform might lead to criminal charges being brought against Mark Zuckerberg and other Facebook officials.


Sources

Ghaffary, Shirin. How to fix Facebook. Vox, recode, November 8, 2021.

Comments

  1. UnknownApril 12, 2022 at 8:17 AM

    Honestly, I'm torn against the section 230 debate. On one hand, I think it gives the big tech companies a bit of a get out of jail free card and it enables them to fester even more harmful content on their platforms, but on the other hand, I don't think Facebook should be responsible for 2 billion people.

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousApril 12, 2022 at 1:26 PM

    I think that section 230 should be abolished. Tech companies as of now have no reason to enforce what is talked about and created on their platforms. With the abolishment of section 230 companies would have to enforce rules on what is posted and have community guide lines. Although this may be an impossible task on some platforms.

    ReplyDelete
  3. UnknownApril 12, 2022 at 9:18 PM

    While social media platforms should definitely be held more accountable for their actions, section 230 truly is a complicated situation. This is especially as Mark Zuckerberg personally is not spreading the content making charges against almost seem unethical. On the other hand, large social media companies should be held more liable for lots of the acts taken on their platforms espeically regarding privacy and crime.

    ReplyDelete
  4. UnknownApril 12, 2022 at 10:11 PM

    I agree that section 230 is a tricky debate because I think free speech is valuable but there should also be something done about the consequences of harmful content. Personally, I am so tired of seeing spam dms, comment sections filled with "bots", or being tagged in posts saying that I "won a free i phone." I'm all for change that will prevent this from continuing.

    - Daniela C

    ReplyDelete

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