Maybe you saw it for yourself, maybe not, but everyone who runs a Facebook page has suffered in recent years. drastic drop in the organic reach of its publications , or a drop in the visibility of any non-sponsored content.
On the Internet, too, the better-off can speak louder.
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In question? A natural congestion effect: the more people there are who post content on Facebook, the more it is likely to be filtered, the average time spent on a “feed” being, if not constant, at least limited. A logic as implacable as it is unequal, because in the game of visibility, not all are in the same boat … reasoning can be bypassed by sponsoring his posts, that is to say by paying . An incremental development which every day reinforces the fact that on the Internet too, the better-off can speak louder. A census reading of the right to speak which is certainly not new , but now implemented in previously unknown proportions .
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Perverse effect of limiting congestion
In order, however, not to limit its social network to a succession of advertisements and branded content (and also after being slapped on the fingers following the “Cambridge Analytica” scandal), Facebook has, there are a few years, reviewed its distribution policy in encouraging interactions between “natural” persons, that is to say by limiting the effect of congestion on the content offered by individuals , to the detriment of the content disseminated by “legal” persons.
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Full screen view
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Clement Jadot.
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An originally laudable intention (although this is’ to be put into perspective in view of the latest revelations), but which had the consequence of putting on the same footing actors who should not be …
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Multinationals, public institutions, restaurants, shops, citizen groups, non-profit organizations, media, blogs, etc., all Facebook pages – “legal” persons – have for years now been housed more or less in the same boat in order to ensure their visibility , that is to say oriented towards three solutions: a) pushing sponsored content, b) pushing content formats on which the penalizing effect is less, c) encouraging the “viral” nature of the pushed content.
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We have seen many media modify their editorial line over desiderata that they did not control, or even did not understand …
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The first solution being reserved for those who can afford it, we have thus seen many actors – media in mind – modify their editorial line over desiderata that they did not control, or even did not understand … This was for example the the case of editorial staff which laid off journalists to hire videographers in their place, short video formats being deemed to be less penalized, before backpedaling, the windfall effect announced being ultimately less favorable than expected.
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Mad race of virality
This is also the reason that explains the mad rush towards virality – last adjustment variable for the less fortunate – which structurally modifies the way in which we tell (and perceive) the world : short titles, touting formulas, simplistic explanations, requirements for publication, etc. A virality that has become the benchmark for performance on the web , however, without any guarantee as to the reliability of the measurement, Facebook is not free from bugs, as the global shutdown of its platforms recently reminded us.
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On Facebook, a cute little cat made the headlines, long before the IPCC report.
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Except once again when it comes to virality, not all dance on the same footing , if only because content with a strong emotional charge is more likely to create interactivity than rational content… This is how on Facebook, the gateway to the world for many Internet users, a somewhat famous “food” blogger easily exceeds the number of European Commission subscribers or that a cute little cat made the headlines, long before the IPCC report …
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Read also
Define and negotiate our expectations regarding new media
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As for a decade, the caravan of social networks passes, the warning bells are barking, and our reading of the world is shrinking . Until when? When will we finally deign to hold the web giants to account and be transparent about their practices? Like it or not, social media has become too important to continue to act like a mystical nebula. It is important today to disenchant them.
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