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TECHNOLOGYFriday 2 February 2018
Facebook’s ‘fixes’- meaningful or just skin deep?
By BARBARA ORTUTAY
AP Technology Writer
NEW YORK (AP) — To Mark
Zuckerberg, fixing Face-
book means many things
— protecting users from
abuse, preventing elec-
tions meddling from mali-
cious actors, weeding out
fake news and “making
sure time spent on Face-
book is well spent.”
To critics, it’s all that and
then some. But many of the
steps Facebook has taken
so far strike them as insuf-
ficient, and in some cases
aimed as much at keeping
people glued to the ser-
vice down the line as at re-
ally addressing Facebook’s
underlying problems.
Zuckerberg, who publicly
sets himself a “personal
challenge” every year, is
this year focused on “fixing
Facebook.” But fixing Face-
book, critics say, should
also involve making it less
addictive and its business
model less dependent on
as many people logging
in as often and for as long
as possible. And it’s defi-
nitely not about creating
new products for younger
kids who can’t use its flag-
ship platform, particularly
amid all the worries about
Facebook’s effects on the
health of adults and teens.
The company has already
announced a slew of new
“fixes.” It’s just far from
clear if these tweaks will
produce lasting change,
or if they’re merely cosmet-
ic adjustments designed to
generate goodwill while
also keeping Facebook’s
business strong.
Earlier this month, for in-
stance, Facebook said
that it would show users
more posts from friends
and family that it deems
“meaningful,” while deem-
phasizing posts from pub-
lishers and businesses. The
move did not affect paid
advertising on the site,
and it follows Zuckerberg’s
declaration last year that
Facebook would focus on
helping users find “mean-
ingful” online groups.
Much of that, said eMarket-
er analyst Debra Aho Wil-
liamson, is about “making
Facebook a happier place
for users.” Even though
Facebook warned that its
to give users more control
how their data is collected
and to back efforts in Con-
gress aimed at preventing
foreign governments from
influencing U.S. elections.
Like other social media
companies, Facebook has
said it will try to prevent
election meddling and will
require disclosure on politi-
cal ads — but it’s been si-
lent about proposed legis-
lation that would require it
to do so. Some of its other
steps are also half-mea-
sures. For instance, while it
set up a page to let peo-
ple see if they followed or
“liked” Russia propaganda
accounts, it is not notify-
ing anyone proactively via
email, the way Twitter is.
“Facebook’s recent
In this Thursday, Jan. 4, 2018, file photo, a man demonstrates how he enters his Facebook page changes do not address
as he works on his computer at a restaurant in Brasilia, Brazil. the threats to elections or
public health,” said Roger
Associated Press
changes might results in response to broader criti- by two-question user sur- McNamee, a venture cap-
people spending less time cism of its strategy. veys and Facebook’s italist and early Facebook
with it, she suspects the In the fourth quarter, the vast trove of data on user investor who is now among
company really hopes us- company said net income behavior — and of local the company’s most vocal
ers will stick around longer. rose 20 percent on revenue news. Such changes are critics, in an email.
While Facebook enjoyed that jumped 47 percent to “not meaningful,” Marc “If the news feed changes
strong revenue, profit and $13 billion. Facebook saw Rotenberg, president of had been made in 2015,
all-time stock highs in 2017, a 14 percent increase in the nonprofit Electronic Pri- they might have had the
there are signs that users monthly users, to 2.13 bil- vacy Information Center perverse effect of magnify-
— for whatever reason — lion; daily users also grew and longtime Facebook ing election interference,”
may be pulling back from by 14 percent. critic, said in an email. McNamee said. “And you
the service. According to Facebook’s other recent “Mark Zuckerberg will cannot cure addiction by
comScore, Facebook visi- fixes amount to somewhat not solve the problems of doing more of the thing
tor spent an average of 910 murky efforts to boost the Facebook by changing a that got you addicted in
minutes on the platform visibility of “trusted” news few settings.” Rotenberg the first place, which is
in December 2017. That’s sources — as determined would prefer Facebook what Zuck recommends,”
down from 974 minutes in he wrote.q
December 2016 and from Cuba protests U.S. internet task force
1050 minutes in the same
month in 2015.
At least some of this pull- By MICHAEL WEISSENSTEIN members or any other de- ernments in recent years.
back might be by design, Associated Press tails of its work. Cuba said U.S. contractor Alan Gross
and it might be tempo- HAVANA (AP) — Cuba is late Wednesday that it de- was imprisoned for five
rary. On Wednesday, protesting the creation of livered diplomatic notes years in Cuba for bringing
Zuckerberg said the com- a U.S. task force on increas- of protest to the top U.S. illegal satellite equipment
pany’s work to encourage ing internet access on the diplomat in Havana and into the country on behalf
“meaningful connections” island — a measure that’s to the State Department in of the U.S. Agency for In-
has already reduced total part of President Donald Washington. The notes “re- ternational Development.
time spent on Facebook Trump’s hardening of U.S. jected the goal of manipu- His release was part of the
by “roughly 50 million hours policy on Cuba. lating the internet to bring deal that led to the rees-
every day.” Divided across The new policy Trump out- about illegal programs with tablishment of diplomatic
Facebook’s 1.4 billion daily lined in June requires the subversive political ends,” relations between the U.S.
active users, that’s about creation of a task force the Cuban Foreign Minis- and Cuba and a broader
two minutes a day. “to examine the techno- try said. The ministry said move toward normaliza-
He added that the chang- logical challenges and op- it “reiterated the Cuban tion by Presidents Barack
es will make Facebook’s portunities for expanding government’s determina- Obama and Raul Castro.
community — and busi- internet access in Cuba,” tion to not tolerate any USAID also sponsored the
ness — “stronger over the including federal funding type of subversive activity creation of a text-messag-
long term.” Zuckerberg has for independent media or interference in its inter- ing-based, Twitter-like Cu-
previously said that it may and “internet freedom.” nal affairs” U.S. attempts to ban social network called
take “months” for Face- The task force will hold its increase Cubans’ access ZunZuneo that was meant
book’s changes to make first meeting in Washington to information have been to morph into a platform
their way to users. Face- on Feb. 7. The U.S. has not the source of extreme ten- for political organizing and
book had no immediate released a list of task force sion between the two gov- potential unrest.q