The proof that Facebook is broken is obvious from its very modus operandi | John Naughton

Despite employing a small army of contractors to monitor posts, it’s clear the company is no longer fit for purposeWay back in the 1950s, a pioneering British cybernetician, W Ross Ashby, proposed a fundamental law of dynamic systems. In his book An Introduction to Cybernetics, he formulated his law of requisite variety, which defines “the minimum number of states necessary for a controller to control a system of a given number of states”. In plain English, it boils down to this: for a system to be viable, it has to be able to absorb or cope with the complexity of its environment. And there are basically only two ways of achieving viability in those terms: either the system manages to control (or reduce) the variety of its environment, or it has to increase its internal capacity (its “variety”) to match what is being thrown at it from the environment.Sounds abstruse, I know, but it has a contemporary resonance. Specifically, it provides a way of understanding some of the current internal turmoil in Facebook as it grapples with the problem of keeping unacceptable, hateful or psychotic content off its platform. Two weeks ago, the New York Times was leaked 1,400 pages from the rulebooks that the company’s moderators are trying to follow as they police the stuff that flows through its servers. According to the paper, the leak came from an employee who said he “feared that the company was exercising too much power, with too little oversight – and making too many mistakes”.... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2019-01-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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How brands and publishers used Facebook Messenger this holiday season

Facebook is bullish on the bot, and its partnering with early-adopting brands and publishers to begin to edge commerce inside of Messenger's four walls. For the holiday season, brands like Burberry and Estée Lauder used Facebook Messenger to extend holiday campaigns into interactive experiences... Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2016-12-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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You Can Now Listen to Live Audio Content on Facebook

Facebook Live isn't just for video. Today the social network launched a new feature dubbed Live Audio that lets users listen to broadcast voice recordings, pushing more audio-only content into newsfeeds. Similar to Facebook Live videos, users can go live from the Facebook app by pressing a... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2016-12-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Why BuzzFeed, Time Inc. are bringing the holiday gift guide to Facebook Messenger

Publishers’ first messenger bots primarily served to send out the day’s news, but some are branching out. BuzzFeed and Time Inc. have both launched holiday gift guide bots on Facebook Messenger. For Time Inc., it's a way to see if there's an appetite for its vast library of lifestyle content on... Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2016-12-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Loyalist flags protester wins £3,000 Facebook damages

Facebook is ordered to pay £3,000 damages to a loyalist flags protester for publishing comments about his children's religion. Continue reading at BBC News

[ BBC News | 2016-12-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Publisher trend inception: Facebook Live meets commerce strategies

Brit + Co and Mindbodygreen are seeing early success in using Facebook Live to drive people to pay for how-to courses. Brit + Co’s recent Facebook Live with a handlettering expert drove 180 pre-registrations for its class -- four times the usual average. Meanwhile, Mindbodygreen has been hosting... Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2016-12-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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HarperCollins Continues Facebook Live Programming with Holiday Campaign

HarperCollins, which launched its daily Facebook Live programming in June and has since reached nearly10 million viewers, kicked off its holiday programming last week. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2016-12-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Boston Globe uses Facebook groups to create direct connections with readers

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[ Digiday | 2016-12-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Facebook Has Now Revealed Its Fourth Marketing Metrics Problem Since September

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[ AdWeek | 2016-12-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Why Facebook’s fake news measures won’t stamp out imposter publishers

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[ Digiday | 2016-12-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Now Facebook Says It Gave Some Publishers Bad Traffic Numbers on Instant Articles

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[ Advertising Age | 2016-12-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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That 'holiday gift exchange' Facebook post is technically an illegal scam

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[ Los Angeles Times | 2016-12-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Facebook Is Enlisting American Users in the Fight Against Fake News

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[ AdWeek | 2016-12-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Bad Choices to John Murray

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[ The Bookseller | 2016-12-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Facebook patent hints at an automated solution for fake news

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[ Engadget | 2016-12-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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In the shadow of Facebook, Twitter loses traction with publishers

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[ Digiday | 2016-12-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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What marketers can learn from Facebook Live’s top brand videos

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[ Digiday | 2016-12-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Publishers Weekly | 2016-12-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Latest in the Facebook “Friend or Foe” Debate

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[ Folio Magazine | 2016-12-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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TV-like programming struggles to find a home on Facebook Live

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[ Digiday | 2016-11-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Facebook’s metrics blunder causes publishers to fret, too

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[ Digiday | 2016-11-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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