“The future depends on all of us. And whether you like Facebook or not, I think we need to recognize what is at stake and come together to stand for voice and free expression at this critical moment. I believe in giving people a voice, because at the end of the day, I believe in people,” Mark Zuckerberg said in his 2019 speech at Georgetown University.
He also believes in making money. And free expression is key to Facebook’s business model. Parent company Meta Platforms Inc is worth 757 billion US dollars at the time of writing. Investors bank on getting a share of the profits, yet its platforms are free to use. That’s because the users are not the customer. Users are the product. Advertisers are the customer.
That idea isn’t new. Fifty years ago already, Richard Serra and Carlota Fay Schoolman explained precisely how it works in a short film titled ‘Television Delivers People’. In the video, anodyne please-hold-the-line music plays while white text scrolls up on a blue background, educating the viewer.
Early on in the clip, the following sequence of messages rolls by:
Commercial television delivers 20 million people a minute.
In commercial broadcasting the viewer pays for the privilege of having himself sold.
It is the consumer who is consumed.
You are the product of t.v.
You are delivered to the advertiser who is the customer.
He consumes you.
The viewer is not responsible for programming – – – – –
You are the end product.
You are the end product delivered en masse to the advertiser.
Today Facebook delivers more than two billion daily active users to the advertiser. Yes, two BILLION. With a ‘b’. A quarter of the world population eyeballs the platform daily, clicking as they browse and leaving behind a footprint that reveals interests and preferences. Facebook carefully collects that data and uses it to sell advertising space.
Advertisers want to place their product right in front of people who might buy it – and Facebook knows who they are. But to maintain this competitive edge, the company needs you to keep coming back to the platform and participating.
Having launched in 2004, Facebook has the advantage of being the world’s first in social media. Over nearly two decades, users have accumulated connections with friends, family, colleagues, schoolmates, and strangers with shared interests or histories. Even if you fall out of love with the platform, you may never fully leave. In fact, around one billion users check in only once a month.
Facebook relies on human nature for its three billion regular visitors. The secret sauce is a concoction of FOMO (the fear of missing out), emotions, allegiances, and free expression. The cycle of engagement looks something like the picture below.
In the context of social media, FOMO includes two processes: the perception of missing out, followed up with a compulsive behaviour to maintain social connections. Say you feel unsure about what your friends are doing this weekend – possibly without you (gasp!). You log into Facebook to check. Just to make sure you’re still part of the gang.
Facebook actively creates opportunities for FOMO, too. When you’ve been away, the platform sends notifications about unread messages and unseen updates, making sure you know things are happening without you and firmly pressing your FOMO button. Sure, users may feel a little uneasy, but luring them back is good for business. Advertisers like high daily traffic numbers.
But logging in alone is not enough. To understand what you like, Facebook needs you to engage and interact with content. Perhaps you’re into knitting and podcasts. Maybe you love fashion and know every word Taylor Swift ever sang. Or you run a local group for your political party. Facebook wants to know, because without this information, its data is as useless as a phonebook to advertisers.
Now, let’s talk about belonging for a bit. Belonging is one of the five basic human needs in Maslow’s hierarchy: people need a sense of belonging and acceptance in social groups. You probably have cultural norms and values in common with your family and the friends you grew up with. But you may diverge on hobbies, interests, and even political views or religion.
For example, you may be the only person you know who is obsessed with Taylor Swift. But thanks to social media, finding other Swifties is easier than ever. You can just join a group or follow a hashtag. Or, after liking a few Taylor Swift posts, the algorithm has you figured out and serves you all the ins and outs you want. And maybe a few you don’t.
Because when you see lies about Taylor, you want to put it right. You, and other Swifties, take to the comments to tell the anti-Swifts how wrong they are. That’s engagement. Facebook needs it and doesn’t really care if the interaction is positive or negative.
Often, though, disagreement evokes a stronger response. I can’t count the number of times I’ve heard, ‘Wait, hang on, someone is wrong on the internet!’ in my house. Correcting random strangers and defending your camp’s beliefs is clearly more important than eating dinner. Or going to bed.
Without free expression, Facebook doesn’t have the diversity of opinions to fan the flames of engagement. And near the edges of any group, we find misinformation – either deliberate or unintentional. Removing it isn’t at the top of Facebook’s to-do list while it keeps people refreshing the page.
There have been some spectacular failures where Facebook propagated viral lies. Hundreds of users comment that claims are false, while supporters of the purported facts like the post for reach and the algorithm pushes it to the top of everyone’s timeline. It’s good content. All is well as long as users interact and advertisers don’t complain.
Zuckerberg didn’t lie in his speech: he likes free expression. It’s critical to the business of selling advertising space. And he is right to believe in people, too. Human nature will deliver Facebook revenues – driven by FOMO or engagement, be it positive or negative.
Facebook needs free expression. Not to make the world a better place, but to turn a profit.
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