While I believe that Facebook and the Internet as a whole have improved many aspects of our lives, I also think that there is much room for improvement. A social network is just like politics: people tend not to pay much attention to what it is, or how it is changing, yet it would be in their best interests to do so. Facebook can be oppressive, as we have little control over what it exposes us to.
Being so integral to the company’s success, we should demand more control over what happens within Facebook.
Maybe you haven’t heard of the newest updates that Facebook is introducing. Who has, considering how often new additions are made to the service? One particularly frightening update is its use of device microphones at any point, supposedly in order to tell friends what you are listening to.
But with more than 1.23 billion active monthly users and a market capitalization of 165.61 billion US dollars — that’s about $134 per user — one cannot ignore the fact that Facebook is huge. As such, it’s no surprise that the company constantly innovates to try to stay on the cutting edge of social media technology, to meet its users’ rising expectations and face competition from rivals such as Twitter.
For users to have more control over Facebook, there could be an association or union of users.
Users don’t seem to be concerned with the use of their data, or the possibility that changes in the company’s policy are made without consultation. And that really should change. It brings to light the lack of control we have over our social media.
If the information we share on Facebook is worth $134 per user — or whatever the actual figure is — it is because, by constantly making up this elaborate picture of ourselves for our friends to see, we are very easy targets for companies that use Facebook’s ad services.
Some people will argue that this is the price you pay for a free service. But I believe that there should be a way for users to have a say in the company’s policies — and not just by making petitions and sharing their outrage on that same social media.
Rather, there could be an association of users, or some sort of union. It is about accountability, it is about involving users in the network they use, and it is about asking them to take part in improving that social media.
In Facebook’s future, there are some serious changes that I’d like to see. I want fewer (to no) ads, since I consider this as just a way to use our brain time for a profit. It needs smarter algorithms to take away the possibility of missing friends’ really important posts. And it needs a better interface for users who speak a number of languages to be able to address their friends in the languages they understand.
As users of social media, we’re almost employees. We create the income for the company. We should be asking for better working conditions.
