In 2006, Facebook was seen as the future of the Internet, a step forward in creating The Global Village. In 2021, Facebook is seen as corrupt and old-hat. Amidst that hatred, boards like the FTC are trying to quell the continous spread of Zuckerberg's empire. Now, a new campaign joins the bus: How To Stop Facebook.
How to Stop Facebook Campaign
Reported by Common Dreams, the How To Stop Facebook campaign is made from a coalition of 40 different organisations. Combining the forces of Fight for the Future, Media Justice, Public Knowledge and a large collection of other activist groups, the plan is to target the company's main sources of profit.
Facebook's main source of profit comes from harvesting and selling data through surveillance-driven algorithms. The campaign takes issue with the company's use of data harvesting and wishes to impose limitations on what they can do.
The campaign writes:
“The problem with companies like Facebook and YouTube is not that they host user-generated content, it’s that they use surveillance-driven algorithms to pick and choose what content goes viral and what content no one sees, in order to keep us all on the platform clicking and scrolling to maximize advertising revenue.”
Read More: Killware cyberattacks are the next big threat from hackers, and they’re already happening
What will they do?
How To Stop Facebook aims to convince Congress to pass new regulations for data privacy. This would prohibit “companies from collecting, purchasing, or otherwise acquiring user information beyond what is needed to provide the service requested by the user”.
Facebook's current algorithms are said to “disproportionately harms Black and brown communities by silencing our voices while artificially amplifying racist and harmful content” This has been proven in recent studies as well as echoed by White House officials.
All-in-all, the campaign wants to get the government to impose certain sanctions on Zuckerberg's company. Will they ever get passed?
Read More: William Shatner admits he’s “scared” of going to space in Blue Origin’s rocket
Explore new topics and discover content that's right for you!
News