Mark Zuckerberg, Founder and CEO of Facebook, has maintained that it’s not a social media company, but a tech organization. It seems as though he has recently changed the “company tune”.
In December 2016, the CEO said Facebook is neither a “traditional” social media firm nor a “traditional” technology organization. Why is this a significant distinction? Because Wall Street considers tech companies to have much larger “price-to-earnings” ratios than most media firms.
Facebook Live Video Chat
Zuckerberg’s characterization during a Facebook Live chat with chief operating officer, Sheryl Sandberg, in December in which they recapped 2016 and projected new innovations for 2017, identified Facebook as “a new kind of platform.”
Zuckerberg also stated Facebook is “not a traditional technology company.” “. . . we build technology and we feel responsible for how it’s used. . ..” He also commented that, while “we don’t write the news, we do more than just distribute the news.” According to USA Today, this is a significant difference in Zuckerberg’s position in the recent past.
As recently as August 2016, he told a group of college students, Facebook was a technology company, not a media company. Facebook is unsure, in the face of the growing “fake news” controversy, of its role as a news outlet. Since almost 50 percent of US adults view their news on Facebook, this subject is an issue the company needs to address.
Fake News
This issue has fueled the confusion (about true current events) of many in the US as to what is real news and what is made up. Prior to the recent presidential election, the fake news of the Pope endorsing Donald Trump for US President, offers a great example of fake news. Many, many people shared that news item with others, believing it to be true.
Conclusion
Facebook apparently is taking steps to stem the rising tide of fake news stories. The company plans to make it easy to report fake news and for fact-checkers to flag made-up news copy. Facebook plans include eliminating monetary incentives for spammers and staying attuned to hints of bogus news postings.
Zuckerberg says he’s proud that his personnel take the issue of flagging or stopping fake news so seriously. Hopefully, Facebook measures to halt the spread of fake news stories prove to be effective.
In December 2016, the CEO said Facebook is neither a “traditional” social media firm nor a “traditional” technology organization. Why is this a significant distinction? Because Wall Street considers tech companies to have much larger “price-to-earnings” ratios than most media firms.
Facebook Live Video Chat
Zuckerberg’s characterization during a Facebook Live chat with chief operating officer, Sheryl Sandberg, in December in which they recapped 2016 and projected new innovations for 2017, identified Facebook as “a new kind of platform.”
Zuckerberg also stated Facebook is “not a traditional technology company.” “. . . we build technology and we feel responsible for how it’s used. . ..” He also commented that, while “we don’t write the news, we do more than just distribute the news.” According to USA Today, this is a significant difference in Zuckerberg’s position in the recent past.
As recently as August 2016, he told a group of college students, Facebook was a technology company, not a media company. Facebook is unsure, in the face of the growing “fake news” controversy, of its role as a news outlet. Since almost 50 percent of US adults view their news on Facebook, this subject is an issue the company needs to address.
Fake News
This issue has fueled the confusion (about true current events) of many in the US as to what is real news and what is made up. Prior to the recent presidential election, the fake news of the Pope endorsing Donald Trump for US President, offers a great example of fake news. Many, many people shared that news item with others, believing it to be true.
Conclusion
Facebook apparently is taking steps to stem the rising tide of fake news stories. The company plans to make it easy to report fake news and for fact-checkers to flag made-up news copy. Facebook plans include eliminating monetary incentives for spammers and staying attuned to hints of bogus news postings.
Zuckerberg says he’s proud that his personnel take the issue of flagging or stopping fake news so seriously. Hopefully, Facebook measures to halt the spread of fake news stories prove to be effective.