Pariser Reading Response

This idea of the interwebz taking over our minds is not a new one but it is one that still freaks me out! Eli Pariser's text The Filter Bumble offers a unique study and look into the ways personal data algorithms shape our technology experience. Because this blog post is late, I did actually have the opportunity to read Clive Thompson's Smarter Than You Think before responding to Pariser. This rule defining order of events actually worked out in my favor this time - by allowing me to compare. However, this post is not meant to work as a compare and contrast between both authors (I still have another post to write) but it did help in my own experience reading for tone and opinions through that tone. It's interesting that the order of the reading started with one of the most paranoid and cynical texts we've read followed by the most positive thinking of our experiences with technology.

In the topic of personalized data, yeah it pisses me off when all I do is look at one pair of shoes one time and for weeks that damn pair of shoes pops up at every opportunity in any online space. Do advertisers not realize that that just makes me want to buy them less?

Apart from my impulsive shopping habits, I have to discuss the recent campaign by Facebook looking to hire journalists to help rebuild their reputation after the Fake News scandal. 

In November 2016, Facebook and Google both pledged to stop advertising income for 'fake news.' In April 2018, Mark Zuckerburg was called in front of Congress to answer questions about many issues concerning his platform - the fakers being one of them. As a result, in July Facebook announced algorithm changes designed to boost content from friends, family, and groups. The company, realizing it had a reputation problem, launched an ad campaign reassuring users that they would be protected from, "spam, clickbait, fake news, and data misuse" (WIRED, w.p.). I couldn't help but notice that jobs are being created based on the existence of fake news and data misuse. Any campaign launched by Facebook creates jobs - even the recent call for young reporters from the platform calls for rebranding. It's fascinating to look at the PR moves that these sites are taking to address these changes. A Facebook spokesperson said, "We're working on how we more effectively identify and differentiate news and news sources across our platform. For instance, we recently announced the Archive of Ads with Political Content, where we'll build separate treatments for both news and non-news content" (WIRED, w.p.). 

I think it's interesting that Mark Zuckerburg was called in front of Congress but this idea of data misuse, we know, is not new. I think the immediacy of Facebook's content with its members is part of what pushed Zuckerburg at the center of our targets. I never found on the press release what qualifies data misuse but I'm certain it goes back to the use of personalized information - advertisements and clickbait designed to fit the person - it's part of what made Zuckerburg a freakin' billionaire after all. I can just imagine Pariser watching the news like, "Yep, what I say?!"