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Facebook Social Networks Politics

How Facebook Is Influencing Who Will Win the Next Election 72

An anonymous reader sends this excerpt from Forbes: [Facebook] announced yesterday that it was shutting down a feature that the Obama campaign used in 2012 to register over a million voters. During the election supporters shared access to their list of Facebook friends list with the campaign through an app. Researchers have found that while people view often political messages with skepticism, they are more receptive and trusting when the information is coming from somebody they know. The feature was credited with boosting Obama’s get-out-the-vote efforts which were crucial to his victory, but Facebook has decided to disable this ability in order to (rightfully) protect users from third-party apps collecting too much of their information.

The company insists that it favors no particular ideology and that its efforts are “neutral.” The first part is likely true, but the second is not possible. The company’s algorithms take into account a proprietary mix of our own biases, connections, and interests combined with Facebook’s business priorities; that is the farthest thing from neutral. Facebook says it just want to encourage “civic participation,” but politically mobilizing the subsection of people that are on their network is not without its own impacts.
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How Facebook Is Influencing Who Will Win the Next Election

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  • by bogaboga ( 793279 ) on Wednesday November 19, 2014 @05:19AM (#48416169)

    The company insists that it favors no particular ideology and that its efforts are âoeneutral.â The first part is likely true, but the second is not possible.

    That second part may still be possible if our learned friends *cough* lawyers *cough* are involved.

  • This change is good for the users of Facebook. The idea that this might change who becomes president shows how bad the US political system is. Facebook does not have a responsibility to influence politics in any way.
    • And good for us who HATE those damned annoying automated app invites.

      Basically what was removed is this:
      1. You add <bogus political app>
      2. <bogus political app> sends me an invite automagically, with your name on it
      3. I get annoyed and delete it

      Now what happens:
      1. You add <bogus political app>
      2. I don't give a fuck because it doesn't pester me with your bullshit
      3. Fin

      Bravo Facebook. If you're one of those annoying fuckers who installed that spammy ass Obama 2012 app, eat my s
  • by Thanshin ( 1188877 ) on Wednesday November 19, 2014 @05:38AM (#48416231)

    Not even $10, imagine if Facebook gave people a new wanted feature (I have no examples because I don't use FB) for their votes.

    How many users would accept? What portion of the population would sell their vote for an iphone?

    • Not even $10, imagine if Facebook gave people a new wanted feature (I have no examples because I don't use FB) for their votes.

      How many users would accept? What portion of the population would sell their vote for an iphone?

      I would. I currently get nothing out of it anyways, and have no real choice in the election. So why not get free stuff at least?

    • What portion of the population would sell their vote for an iphone?

      I certainly would sell my vote for an iPhone during a typical election in my district. None of the races are close, and my vote for the token libertarian is typically grouped with "other/write in" in the results.

      For $10, however, I would prefer to keep my vote and the personal satisfaction of my pointless gesture.

  • Vote People (Score:4, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday November 19, 2014 @05:43AM (#48416243)

    Politicians have won every election. And the american people has been the loosers every time. Seems properly rigged already.

  • by Anonymous Coward

    For the last year or so, the main thing Facebook has been influencing me to do is to stay away from Facebook.

  • by PhilHibbs ( 4537 ) <snarks@gmail.com> on Wednesday November 19, 2014 @06:25AM (#48416317) Journal

    They're shutting down a feature that one campaign used to spread their message - and this is influencing? Surely it's stopping an influence?

  • > protect users from third-party apps collecting too much of
    their information.

    Right, because Facebook hates competition from third-party apps that collect too much user information.
  • Not surprising (Score:2, Insightful)

    by Orne ( 144925 )

    After the results if this midterm election, it's not surprising Facebook is ending their get out the vote program?

    Why? Because Millenials are increasingly voting Republican and Libertarian [usnews.com] after decades of lip service from the Democrats. Jobs, college debt, and personal liberty are extremely important issues to this generation.

    Facebook, with its left leaning executives, would see no reason to mobilize their opposition's base.

    • Re: (Score:2, Funny)

      by Anonymous Coward

      “It comes from a very ancient democracy, you see..."
      "You mean, it comes from a world of lizards?"
      "No," said Ford, who by this time was a little more rational and coherent than he had been, having finally had the coffee forced down him, "nothing so simple. Nothing anything like so straightforward. On its world, the people are people. The leaders are lizards. The people hate the lizards and the lizards rule the people."
      "Odd," said Arthur, "I thought you said it was a democracy."
      "I did," said Ford. "It i

    • What nonsense, who would vote this up? To be sure, younger voters were less pro Democrat in the last election (not unexpected as all voting segments were less pro Democrat), but they were still majority Democrat by a wide margin. So I hardly think Democrats would want to suppress Facebook voting efforts because the young aren't pro Democrat enough, how does that even make sense?
    • Re: (Score:2, Insightful)

      by Anonymous Coward

      Because Millenials are increasingly voting Republican and Libertarian

      Nothing is "increasing" about Millennial voting habits. Their turnout was down 38% from the 2010 midterm and down 65% from the 2012 presidential. Both Republicans and Democrats failed to get their young supporters to submit a ballot, but that impacts Democrats far more.

      A more accurate story would be "Millenials increasingly want more mail-in voting, online voting, weekend voting, multi-day voting, and extended voting hours." Basically, they want more democracy with fewer hindrances. They're also still

    • by RyoShin ( 610051 )

      Jobs, college debt, and personal liberty are extremely important issues to this generation.

      Then why in the name of all that is noodly would they vote Republican? If young voters did swing from Democrat to Republican, I bet they did so for one of two reasons:
      1) blindly believing candidate rhetoric (which both Republicans and Democrats are guilty of spewing), or
      2) they were upset with "their guy" and mistakenly thought the "other guy" would do better.

      Considering that the voter turnout was only 36.4% for the 2 [washingtonpost.com]

  • by argStyopa ( 232550 ) on Wednesday November 19, 2014 @08:06AM (#48416623) Journal

    ...I'd love it if routine Facebook use invalidated your vote.

    • by Anonymous Coward

      What someone needs to do is create a facebook app. Tell everyone that it allows you to vote and avoid long lines at the polls. Everyone who believes it votes using facebook and this problem is solved. No need to thank me.

  • Why not? It's as meaningful as any other method.

  • Dead wrong (Score:2, Interesting)

    by andyring ( 100627 )

    The /. post's author says "The company insists that it favors no particular ideology and that its efforts are “neutral.” The first part is likely true..."

    Completely false. Zuckerberg is as far left as they come. I'm not aiming to make this discussion political, but it's abundantly obvious in the policies he, and by extension his company, endorse. Obama tells Zuckerberg "Jump" and Mark immediately asks "How high?"

  • Dude, if this means no more streams of gold invites when I don't want them I'll just be crushed. What will I di with myself if half my facebook experience doesn't involve disabling requests from apps my friends use?

    On a side note: people still use Facebook?

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