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Facebook (FB) Alters Trending Topics Procedure after Uproar
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After facing backlash, Facebook Inc. has now tweaked the procedure to select “Trending Topics” but at the same time maintained that it never found “political bias” involved while selecting the stories for the same.
Last day, in a blog post, Facebook general counsel Colin Stretch also added that “our data analysis indicated that conservative and liberal topics are approved as trending topics at virtually identical rates. We were also unable to substantiate any of the specific allegations of politically-motivated suppression of particular subjects or sources”.
Earlier this month, a Gizmodo report, quoting an unnamed ex-Facebook contractor, alleged that Facebook intentionally concealed conservative news. The report caused massive uproar and prompted Senator John Thune to write a letter to Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg demanding an explanation.
After the allegations surfaced and the Senator’s letter, Facebook posted a full account of how “Trending Topics” selection works on its website. Zuckerberg also met fifteen key conservative leaders to assure them that Facebook is not prejudiced.
However, in the yesterday’s blog post, Facebook did not deny the likelihood of human error. As a result, to minimize such instances, the social media service has outlined new measures. These include updating the terminology in its Guidelines for better understanding and providing refresher training for all reviewers. It will also do away with relying on external news websites “to identify, validate or assess the importance of particular topics”.
Facebook will be “removing the ability to assign an importance level to a topic through assessment of the topic’s prominence on the top-10 list of news outlets”. The company will also update its Help Center to provide more information on how “Trending Topics” works.
Facebook has been dealing with this whole issue very seriously. Any hint of a bias can cause loss of users. For social media services including Facebook, loss of this key metric will not bode well for financial performance. With over 1.69 billion users, Facebook remains the biggest social media service.
At present, Facebook carries a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). Other stocks worth consideration include NetEase, Inc. (NTES - Free Report) , Ellie Mae, Inc. and Yirendai Ltd. (YRD - Free Report) . All carry the same rank as Facebook.
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Facebook (FB) Alters Trending Topics Procedure after Uproar
After facing backlash, Facebook Inc. has now tweaked the procedure to select “Trending Topics” but at the same time maintained that it never found “political bias” involved while selecting the stories for the same.
Last day, in a blog post, Facebook general counsel Colin Stretch also added that “our data analysis indicated that conservative and liberal topics are approved as trending topics at virtually identical rates. We were also unable to substantiate any of the specific allegations of politically-motivated suppression of particular subjects or sources”.
Earlier this month, a Gizmodo report, quoting an unnamed ex-Facebook contractor, alleged that Facebook intentionally concealed conservative news. The report caused massive uproar and prompted Senator John Thune to write a letter to Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg demanding an explanation.
After the allegations surfaced and the Senator’s letter, Facebook posted a full account of how “Trending Topics” selection works on its website. Zuckerberg also met fifteen key conservative leaders to assure them that Facebook is not prejudiced.
However, in the yesterday’s blog post, Facebook did not deny the likelihood of human error. As a result, to minimize such instances, the social media service has outlined new measures. These include updating the terminology in its Guidelines for better understanding and providing refresher training for all reviewers. It will also do away with relying on external news websites “to identify, validate or assess the importance of particular topics”.
Facebook will be “removing the ability to assign an importance level to a topic through assessment of the topic’s prominence on the top-10 list of news outlets”. The company will also update its Help Center to provide more information on how “Trending Topics” works.
Facebook has been dealing with this whole issue very seriously. Any hint of a bias can cause loss of users. For social media services including Facebook, loss of this key metric will not bode well for financial performance. With over 1.69 billion users, Facebook remains the biggest social media service.
At present, Facebook carries a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). Other stocks worth consideration include NetEase, Inc. (NTES - Free Report) , Ellie Mae, Inc. and Yirendai Ltd. (YRD - Free Report) . All carry the same rank as Facebook.
Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report >>