Tag Archive for 'FaceBook'

Is there an echo in here? Living in the bubble.

Published on October 18, 2010 in Technology. 2 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , .

photo by scion_cho

Over at Beyond the Times, Walter wrote about the inevitable echo chamber effect that would follow the introduction of a news aggregator into Facebook update streams.   Given all the “likes” assigned a variety of content on the site, it would be an easy feat to develop an algorithm to direct relevant news  that fits an individual user’s world view, eliminating any challenges to that perspective.

It’s not as though such formulas aren’t already pervasive on the intertubes.  Netflix regularly recommends a variety of films within subgenres that I frequently view, and Amazon.com is constantly tweaking its suggestions to me based on my purchases, viewing and rating of titles.

Eli Pariser recently discussed the filter bubble phenomena with Lynn Paramore of the Roosevelt Institute:

Since Dec. 4, 2009, Google has been personalized for everyone. So when I had two friends this spring Google “BP,” one of them got a set of links that was about investment opportunities in BP. The other one got information about the oil spill. Presumably that was based on the kinds of searches that they had done in the past. If you have Google doing that, and you have Yahoo doing that, and you have Facebook doing that, and you have all of the top sites on the Web customizing themselves to you, then your information environment starts to look very different from anyone else’s. And that’s what I’m calling the “filter bubble”: that personal ecosystem of information that’s been catered by these algorithms to who they think you are.

This technology-induced bubble is particularly problematic in that it is human nature to accept facts and opinions that align with  personal beliefs and disregard information that clashes.  A recent Yale Law School study published in the Journal of Risk Research found that regardless of political leanings,

Individuals systematically overestimate the degree of scientific support for positions they are culturally predisposed to accept.

Social technology is making it effortless find and follow preferred sentiment and these sites are increasingly becoming the go-to places for news.   Forty-two percent of respondents in a Retrevo Gadgetology study admit to checking and updating their Twitter and Facebook feeds first thing in the morning, with 23 percent of iPhone identifying these feeds as their morning news.  In a recent Oxygen Media study, more than one third of women 18-34 years old reported checking Facebook before getting out of bed in the morning.

What happens to society when people can no longer have informed discussions of reality and data because of a refusal to acknowledge the very existence, let alone the validity, of information that conflicts with our own world view?  Does it increasingly heighten the notion of an “Other” that could destroy a preferred way of living?  Should marginalized religions, races and cultures expect increased persecution for being an outlier of mainstream thought?

And most importantly, how do we find ways to be more receptive to ideas that challenge our own? New solutions to old problems could emerge from the discussion that follows.

Dear Linkedin: You're Not FaceBook

Published on November 8, 2008 in Business. 0 Comments Tags: , , .

Attention LinkedIn:

I hate to be the one to say it, but you’re not FaceBook.  In an effort to try to be cooler, the quality of the experience is on the decline.

Applications

It would be hard to miss the sudden proliferation of applications available to pimp one’s profile and LinkedIn experience.  Once you leave the home page, access to these applications takes a bit of effort.  Would a drop down menu be too much to ask?

Events

At first I was gung ho about the events calendar. . . but then I used it.

With no way to sort events, I can’t see what’s coming up in the next few days. There’s no rhyme or reason to the ordering of the listings, so events in the distant future  may show up before those that are just a few days away.  Surely there should be a way to sort by date?

Then I posted a few relevant events to my life.  Upon posting, the site assured me the event would be shared with my network, so I checked in with a connection to confirm.  The event in question isn’t popping up the connection updates, nor is it anywhere to be found at first glance on the events page.  If my immediate connections aren’t notified, I’m doubtful my extended network is flashed the details either.

I also posted an important event that I don’t plan to attend.  Unfortunately, if you’re not attending an event you post, it disappears and you have to return to the search box to find it.  Surely, events should remain somehow tethered to the person that posted it?

Group Management

I happen to manage several groups; relevant groups can be very useful. And the new discussion boards within encourage greater interaction, which is encouraging.

However, the inability to sort members by name and date of application/acceptance is non-existant.  This sorting capability was available with early incarnations of groups, but removed as they upgraded. Despite complaints from group owners, the lack of sorting ability continues, though LinkedIn keeps promising to give it back.

And while one can export the member and pending member lists into excel, one shouldn’t have to.  With respect to the notion of “keep it simple, stupid,” LinkedIn would better serve its community leaders if we could do our organzing on site.

So

All the added applications and functions that can be thought up aren’t much use if they’re not easy to manipulate.   If they’re not workable, LinkedIn starts looking less attractive.  With 30 million users and growing, seems like changes might roll out better if they spend more time in QA.

LinkedIn users aren’t on the site for recreational purposes, like FaceBook serves.  LinkedIn users are professionals trying to make the most of the networkign for professional development.  So functionability matters, and it would be great if LinkedIn realized the same.

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