Time to boycott Facebook!

[Johnny2X2X]

Do people even realize what this application is now? Facebook is a potent form of mind control that people opt into. We voluntarily give them more information on ourselves than we even comprehend. Every quiz, every like, and every post is used to create a detailed psychological profile that is used to manipulate and control us with fear.

Facebook lied about how they were being used and what they were doing. We have Donald Trump because of Facebook.

And this was not just about Cons being manipulated, the Dem primaries were heavily influenced by this mind control. This does not discriminate based on your politics, I see fake stories based on fear posted here every day too.

ENOUGH! Facebook is an insidious form of control that we must reject! It is being used to tear our country apart. I personally am organizing a boycott and have gotten pledges from friends and family to leave FB forever.

[ksoze]

1. Facebook did not elect Trump

No more than any other media outlet helped share opinion. If you want to boycott FB, don't use it. You can control what you see and when you see it. This mind control stuff is tin foil hat material. If you want to boycott something that does influence people - boycott Fox.

[Sherman A1]

13. Precisely

Facebook is simply another form or communication. Has it been exploited by some and likely will be again, Yes. That said, You are absolutely correct that it did not elect the current resident of the White House any more than the breathless "Trump just had a cheese sandwich" cable news did with their wall to wall coverage of his every move and every tweet.

[Squinch]

19. Have you read what Cambridge Analytica was doing? It's a lot more than another form of

communication.

If you are on it, you are being manipulated.

[Johnny2X2X]

21. Exactly!

It's time for FB users to learn everything that is happening with their data.

[Sherman A1]

22. I am

And I can sort the wheat from the chaff. The news from the Botanical garden, the pro union sites, the local meat market and friends birthdays have certainly been manipulating, but somehow I have survived and continue to be a pragmatic progressive.

[Johnny2X2X]

65. You sure about that?

https://www.technologyreview.com/s/528706/facebooks-emotional-manipulation-study-is-just-the-latest-effort-to-prod-users/

[Sherman A1]

74. Well,

My hobbies haven't changed (although I now have more information on photography, genealogy and wargaming than I had before), my political views haven't changed (I still think Bernie Sanders is Too Conservative, but what he has been saying is the same things I have been saying for decades), My friends Birthday's haven't changed (unless the calendar is now different and no one told me), I did get the corned beef dinner at the meat market in Ferguson on Saturday which I wouldn't have known about without their Facebook post (so I guess some manipulation is possible there). I do like the photos posted in the Lockheed Constellation Group, because I think it's a cool looking old airliner. I follow the History Museum, Zoo, Library and Botanical Garden to keep up with their event schedules. My Union and local Labor newspaper posts are informative regarding pushing back against Right to Work.

You Tell Me?

[LanternWaste]

42. Seems you're simply projecting your own lack of mental discipline onto everyone else.

"If you are on it, you are being manipulated..."

Seems you're simply projecting your own lack of mental discipline onto everyone else.

If you're too weak to avoid the manipulation, it's great you admit to it; yet there is simply no valid reason to apply what may be unique to you or a small demographic onto people who know what they're doing.

[Squinch]

52. I'm not on Facebook. And I am glad you think you are immune to this, but it's naive

to think people were manipulated because they were "weak" or "lack mental discipline."

Do you have any brand loyalties on household products? Has an ad ever made you really get a yen for a burger? If yes, you are susceptible to manipulation. But this is much more precise and much more constant.

ETA: even if you are correct, though, that only the weak minded fall for this, the fact of a social media outlet allowing the manipulation of the weak minded by one political party to influence the workings of our Democracy is a serious threat to that Democracy.

It misses the point to shrug it off by saying, "I am just too mentally steely for them to get to me."

[Johnny2X2X]

73. Zero to do with strength or weakness

This is not about that, this is about human emotions that we all have being manipulated.

[we can do it]

48. Thank you. Sick and tired of farcebook apologists.

[Codeine]

59. Youre only manipulated to the degree that

you allow yourself to be manipulated. It’s honestly no more difficult to overcome than any other form of media.

If a person was mush-minded enough that social media could manipulate his choice for President then it’s almost a given that that person was going to vote for the Tangerine Idi Amin anyway.

[Johnny2X2X]

72. Not even close to true

Facebook began emotional manipulation years ago.

[Codeine]

80. I guess if you are determined to be frightened

of Teh Intarwebz I can’t stop you.

[Thirty by 30]

81. Stop the panic

Facebook is what you want to be. My feed is nothing but dogs, funny animal stories, fuzzy bunnies and fuzzy relatives. OK, I confess baseball and railfan/foamer stuff, too. Any political crap that show up, I just block. I'm there for the dancing goats, OK.

[Siwsan]

2. People who can be mind controlled by Facebook could likely be mind controlled by bubble gum cards

You either have the power of discernment, or you don't. Any, beyond that, anyone who uses Facebook as their primary news source has more issues than I would care to explain.

[Squinch]

56. See post 52.

[Siwsan]

85. Creating a hankering for a burger is a whole different level of manipulation, IMHO

But everyone is an individual. I'm still not buying that anyone with a degree of intellectual, social, political curiosity would ever get most of their information off of Facebook. Especially when trump* is the candidate. That is just plain scary.

But, again, that's just IMHO, and I'm never one to refuse to consider other's opinions.

[Blue_Adept]

3. I'd rather regulate and ensure that it and other services are run properly

Because with what, a billion+ users, any boycott is not going to be noticed in the slightest. You're just ceding ground.

[Dread Pirate Roberts]

4. Facebook does suck.

However, I have to agree with the posters above. Facebook didn't elect Trump. Anybody weak-minded enough to be influenced by Facebook was probably going to be swayed by something else. It's the use of the data and the micro-targeting and psychological influences that evaded existing election rules and regulations. Getting people to understand that they are being targeted is the first step to being resistant. It's not the platform, which is a trite and vacuous time sucking pastime.

[Johnny2X2X]

5. Not weak minded

This is what people don't get, everyone was negatively influenced by Facebook, and it continues today. And it has nothing to do with the strength of your mind, we are all vulnerable to this form of mind control.

Fear based marketing rules the day. Thinking only the weak minded fall victim furthers the problem. Facebook is unique in its data gathering and is the only tool that could have influenced the election so much. We need an honest account of what is really happening.

[Squinch]

24. I think it is naive to dismiss a sophisticated attack based on a minute study of people's fears and

prejudices as only working on the weak-minded.

[Johnny2X2X]

64. It works on everyone, literally.

https://www.technologyreview.com/s/528706/facebooks-emotional-manipulation-study-is-just-the-latest-effort-to-prod-users/

[sinkingfeeling]

6. Just read in student newspaper that Facebook is losing younger

users to Snapchat and Instagram. I hope it fails within the next decade.

[Johnny2X2X]

8. Snapchat and Instagram are just as bad and could be worse

They are Apps that gather data and monitor your movement too.

Here's the truth, "YOU, ME, and EVERYONE" who uses social media has been influenced by it, and there is not a Facebook user who hasn't shared fake stories and believed totally false ones they've read. And it's all part of a very specific methodology to get people to consume more because when people are angry, outraged, and afraid, they will buy more stuff.

This is outrageous enough, but the fact that foreign powers used this method to divide our country and elect a monster while Facebook was lying and concealing is outrageous and needs accounting for. Facebook users deserve to know everything that is being done with their information. The average user doesn't have a clue.

[sinkingfeeling]

58. DU is the only social media I use. Hate Twitter and deleted FB account in 2015.

[Johnny2X2X]

62. I love this website

DU is an oasis for me in a world that's gone mad. But...DU users are not immune, there is misinformation posted here daily. And DU ad content is also linked to Facebook.

It's a continual feedback loop.

Again, I am advocating Facebook be compelled to make public everything they are doing with our personal data. I am boycotting them at least until I get the information I need to make an informed decision on them.

[CelticWinter]

7. i deleted fb because

I will not use a site that cant be trusted, and even though I don't buy into their bs they can access my friends list and I wont allow them using their bs on other people. They want to be in the pocket of some rightwing nut job collecting data on users they can piss up a rope their not using mine, you don't betray people and expect them to stick around it doesn't work that way.
Celtic

[Johnny2X2X]

10. Very good!

I am organizing a boycott and then am deleting FB forever.

But I want to be careful here, although Right Wing wackos took the presidency using Facebook, this is not a partisan issue in the end. Right and Left are being manipulated non stop on Facebook and it's tearing our country apart.

[el_bryanto]

9. I have to admit I've never felt controlled by Facebook, but after reading your post . . .

I still don't feel controlled by Facebook. I guess that's the insidious part.

Bryant

[Cuthbert Allgood]

12. ....

[Codeine]

61. Thats how they get you!

They get you by not getting you! Sneaky as fuck!

[Sherman A1]

75. Precisely

It's the old Double Secret Get'em by Not Getting'em Plan, We obviously have fallen for the insidious plot.

The Scalawags!

[Cuthbert Allgood]

11. Do you have any study to actually confirm this?

Because pretty much every media study would deny that one single outlet has that much power.

The bigger problem is the information bubble we create for ourselves (or have created for us) which limits the information we get to just that we are interested in. But, even then, it isn't one media outlet causing the problem.

But, sure, get off my lawn Facebook.

[Deb]

14. A DUer warned us years ago about Facebook data mining

I believe the respected DUer's advice was taken seriously by many of us. I no longer get chided by my children for not belonging.

[aikoaiko]

15. meh. I saw more scary (and true) shit about Trump on FB than stuff about HRC.

I can understand why people don't want to be involved because they value their privacy, but FB is not the next Great Satan.

[Neema]

16. When I find a better way to communicate with my family and friends around the globe, I'll do it.

Until then, I think my brain is able to discern bullshit from reality.

[Johnny2X2X]

20. Everyone thinks it didn't happen to them

It did happen to you! It happened to me. And it is still happening. Everyone has a smugness about this, but to this day there are stories you believe about Bernie, Hillary, Nancy Pelosi, and yes even Donald Trump that are utterly false.

Trump is a monster, the true stories about him are horrific enough, but it doesn't take a genius to figure out they are also planting fake Trump stories to cast doubt on the real ones.

We are so far down the rabbit hole, and yet most Americans' response is simply, "It didn't happen to me because my bullshit meter is too strong."

[Neema]

35. I generally take everything I read online with a grain of salt. I'm on FB to connect

with my friends and family. The other stuff is just noise. Like I said, when there is an alternative that allows me to do what FB does, I'll be happy to switch. Until then I'm not willing to sacrifice the connection I now have that never existed before. It's easy for Americans to say fuck Facebook, but for many around the globe it's been a lifeline.

[Johnny2X2X]

17. Facebook tracks your activity on other sites

I used to work for a firm that sold vitamins online, I was shocked at how we could legally track the sites people visited, we knew not only what sites sent us traffic, but what sites were viewed after a potential customer viewed our site. And this was 7 years ago. Facebook tracks every place you visit, including DU. They generate ad content on other sites that you visit based on your Facebook generated psychological profile. The average user has no idea how they are being tracked. And this thread is proof that people are oblivious to it, and think that if they are strong minded it won't affect them.

It is a very true statement to make that, "The Russians used Facebook as a weapon to get Donald Trump elected."

[Ron Obvious]

77. That's why I use the Ghostery browser extension

It blocks trackers in an easy to use, no maintenance way. You might be amazed how many trackers the average news websites use. 12-20 per page is not at all unusual.

On this page I get only 1: Site Analytics.

[Iggo]

18. Never had it. Never will. (n/t)

[backtoblue]

25. +1 nt

[OliverQ]

23. I really want to delete FB but it's the only form

of contact I have with some people, and I'm a member of certain groups that are important for me. Ugh!

[Johnny2X2X]

27. I'm struggling with this myself

My wife runs a business with a page on Facebook. I really am interested in old friends and their families. But the cost of this is hidden and the more I learn about the cost the more I think it's too high of a cost.

[poboy2]

26. Jim Carey said so a month ago. What a comedian, just laugh at him I guess.

[snowybirdie]

28. But, but, but

My grandkids! We stay a part of their lives there. Please don't tell me what to do. Thank you

[Kilgore]

29. No problem, I dont do social media

And beleive it's a better idea with each passing day.

[Anon-C]

30. Yes. Yes. Yes!!!!!!!!

If you would boycott Koch Industries then boycotting FB is a no brainer.

[jrthin]

31. I deleted FB last year as I came to realize

it is destructive to our democracy.

[Johnny2X2X]

33. We deserve to know

Facebook needs to come clean, they'e been secretive for too long. Its users deserve to know how their data is being collected and what is being done with it.

[jrthin]

51. Totally agree w/you. nt

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

32. Better yet, people should be discerning and not stupid.

Facebook used insidious advertising, not "mind control." But isn't that what all advertising is, or tries to be? I don't give a damn about Facebook; I seldom pay much attention to it, but it isn't the only vehicle for bullshit out there. They just let themselves be used, and damn them for that, but maybe people should start using their brains a little more.

[Johnny2X2X]

36. More than just advertising

Link to tweet

More to follow, and they call it mind control themselves.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

44. I'm not suggesting that Cambridge Analytica wasn't up to no good

or that Facebook should have allowed itself to be used by them. What I am suggesting is that people should recognize the existence of a thing called confirmation bias. Everyone has this tendency. It means you seek out and agree with information that confirms or strengthens what you already believe or that you would like to be true. It's why conservatives watch FOX. It's why some especially stupid people believed Hillary was running a child sex ring out of the basement of a pizza parlor. It's also why even here on DU people sometimes post absurd, over-the-top stuff about Trump and other GOPers without checking to see whether it was satire, which it almost always is. I'm just saying, do a little research before pouncing on some juicy item from the Internet and assuming it's true just because you want it to be true.

[FarCenter]

34. I look at the occasional posting from one of several family and friends.

Pictures of the grandkids, and that sort of thing. I don't get anything else on facebook. No news at all. You might be doing something wrong.

[Johnny2X2X]

39. And yet

Facebook knows every site you visit on the internet, and can filter your feed from your friends and family to manipulate your emotions. They can even dictate ad content on other sites you visit. And by ad content, I mean more than just ads for those shoes you might be interested in based on your internet history, I mean content designed to make someone with your psychological profile angry and outraged that day from 1pm to 2pm EST, or whenever they determined your outrage (or lack of outrage) best serves whoever purchased your psychological profile.

And Facebook has been caught lying about this over and over.

[FarCenter]

41. Install Adblocker+ and get rid of those pesky ads

[democratisphere]

37. Unsubscribe and close your account for good. It is that simple.

Email or texting with photos can replace fakebook.

[pangaia]

38. I understand people's concern with FB.

I can only say my experience.

I use it to stay in contact and up to date with my actual friends, some of whom I DID meet through FB), professional acquaintances and professional events and happenings around the planet. from NY to Dallas to Seoul to Kyoto to Shangahi to Wuhan to Novosibirsk, to St Petersburg to Moscow(a GREAT live broidcast at noon today EDT, btw), to Oslo, to Helsinki to Berlin to Bucharest to Rome to barcelona to Den Haag to Rio De Janiero... etc etc....

I NEVER make political posts and with only 3 exceptions have never even made a 'reply' to a friend's political post....of which there are very few. And, not
surprisingly, those few are ALWAYS by diehard progressive friends, some, actually quite internationally well-known musicians, LOL
I have never seen anything remotely resembling 'mind control...'


I do, however certainly believe that millions of others do experience that.

Just not me.

And pulleese.. Do not tell me, "Oh, yes you have seen mind control. But you just don't know it."

[Johnny2X2X]

66. This is from 4 years ago

https://www.technologyreview.com/s/528706/facebooks-emotional-manipulation-study-is-just-the-latest-effort-to-prod-users/

It's much more involved now.

[pangaia]

84. Very interesting.

[C_U_L8R]

40. A lot of friends have disabled their accounts

My finger is on the button....

[California_Republic]

54. I was kinda saving it for a big event

[California_Republic]

43. Stay on FB and post this information

[ananda]

45. Sorry!

I just can't do it. I like my friends and
we help keep each other informed
on politics and events!

[njhoneybadger]

47. That's how my wife feels about

[njhoneybadger]

46. I told my wife that last night, Room got real quiet so i dropped it.

Is there an alternative to Facebook ?
It makes more sense to force Facebook to do the right thing.

[bearsfootball516]

49. LOL no

[Yonnie3]

50. I post on Facebook daily.

I post a reminder of one gun violence victim per weekday.

I then scroll through some hobby related groups, some additional closed groups and then I like all the anti-trump/republican memes that aren't fake news. I share negative news stories about republicans. I interact with some of my family from time to time.

Ads are software blocked and any misleading sponsored posts are flagged to Facebook as fake.

I am not controlled by Facebook.

[malaise]

53. Let me see now

How do I boycott a place where I never signed up?

[Johnny2X2X]

55. Facebook shares down 8% today

My thread is having an effect!!!

[dalton99a]

57. "Father of the World Wide Web" Tim Berners-Lee called for a regulatory crackdown

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/the-drumbeat-of-worries-around-facebook-and-other-tech-leaders-just-got-louder-2018-03-19
Why the case for betting against Facebook is ‘building fast’
Published: Mar 19, 2018 10:54 a.m. ET

[Johnny2X2X]

60. People have been sounding the alarm for a while

Facebook crossed a line long ago and the general public has no idea what they are doing. That's a problem.

[dalton99a]

63. +1. I think more people are waking up

http://money.cnn.com/2018/03/19/technology/business/facebook-data-privacy-crisis/index.html

Indeed, the most alarming aspect of Cambridge Analytica's "breach" is that it wasn't a breach at all. It happened almost entirely above board and in line with Facebook policy.

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/03/19/roger-mcnamee-facebook-is-losing-consumer-trust.html

Facebook users are "finally starting to recognize that this is not the fun and games, innocent place they thought it was," tech investor Roger McNamee said Monday.

[LovingA2andMI]

67. You Are Wise...

However, there are too many individuals that will still refuse to see what is obvious and in their face about the psychological manipulation of Facebook. It goes back to Pavlov's Dogs, Classical Conditioning, and Behavioral Psychology.

Facebook is too many individuals, Crack or Meth.

[Johnny2X2X]

70. I understand

It's human instinct to think that it can't happen to me, I'm too smart and in control for that to work on me.

Repeat after me an absolute truth if you're a Facebook user, "I have read and believed(and probably shared) lies on Facebook, Facebook has manipulated my emotions and moods over and over again."

It doesn't mean you're weak willed, it doesn't mean you're less intelligent, it simply means you're a human being with emotions that can be affected.

You can see the evidence for this on this very forum daily. Doesn't mean DU is over all a reasonable place to get info from, just shows that DU members are just as human as everyone else and fall for fake stories because their emotions are being played.

[LuckyCharms]

68. Near the time I first started posting here, I had several posts which...

essentially stated that facebook would be the demise of this country unless changes were made.

I agree with you 100%.

[Johnny2X2X]

76. We are divided

Our side needs to realize how we've been made to see the other side and to consider for one moment that maybe we need to look deeper.

[KG]

69. heh.

no.

[shanti]

71. I left FB in 2012

and was gone until just last December, when I started it up again. Only did it to contact an old bf, and because my oldest said I couldn't see pics of the grands any other way. Turns out, there was too much water under the bridge for the old bf, but I like seeing the grandchildren pics. FB is not my happy place though and I limit my participation.

[Johnny2X2X]

79. Transparency

I don't care if it's destroyed, I just want full transparency.

[Catherine Vincent]

82. I have 2 Facebook accts

One with my real name but the last name is spelled differently. The other was created with a fake name so I can follow the page of a pop star.

[ailsagirl]

83. Never use it, never will

[Kali]

86. meh, just practice random acts of anarchy

same with buying shit on plastic - always throw in some comment or item that makes no sense for your "profile"

keep them guessing as they spy on you.