Deleting Facebook is easier said than done

[Blue_Adept]

But it goes beyond just keeping in touch with loved ones. Many people rely on Facebook for employment as well as community support. I'm a member of a couple of Facebook groups where comedians and improv troupes regularly find gigs or advertise their shows. I'm in another group where Bay Area female entrepreneurs find solace with each other and help each other find work.

Safiya Noble, an assistant professor of information studies at the University of Southern California, wrote in her book, the Algorithms of Oppression: "For many people, Facebook is an important gateway to the internet. In fact, it is the only version of the internet that some know, and it plays a central role in communicating, creating community and participating in society online."

https://www.engadget.com/2018/03/21/deleting-facebook-is-easier-said-than-done/

[greymattermom]

1. One easier solution

just NEVER click on an ad from Facebook.

[Blue_Adept]

2. There's a lot of layers to things, so it's not just not clicking ads

That said, I've used FB Purity for years and never see ads on it anyway.

[Kilgore]

3. Looks like Facebook was successful

In attaching itself to our lives. Kind of like a parasite.

Im thankful I never joined.

[hueymahl]

4. I guess I don't have much in common with the author of that story

I've had a facebook account almost since the beginning. I would use it to check on distant friends and remote family, but just occasionally. It was an occasional source of righteous indignation when I would see some "friend" I had not spoken to in 20 years post some crazy political crap. I found myself using it more and more in the past year. But what I came to realize, is that it harmed my relationships more than improved them. Instead of reaching out to old friends to catch up on the phone or in person or even by email, I would just check their status. Real friends became virtual friends and virtual friends became ??? Not really anything.

About 2 months ago I decided to delete my account. If anything, my friendships have gotten better, as I have tended to my real relationships instead of the superficial relationships that facebook engenders.

I am sure for some people quitting facebook would be hard. But my guess is it would not nearly be as hard as you think, and the upside may be far greater than you think.

Give it a shot. You may be surprised.

[Blue_Adept]

5. You get out of it what you put into it

If you used it occasionally or rarely and didn't interact, it wouldn't mean much to you.

I had gone onto it after years of IRC and Livejournal and with a lively community of friends made through my work convention circuit over the years. There's no way to keep up with them proper on any other social media service. NONE.

The lifestyle you present of email/phone calls is last century. Really, things changed and moved forward. It's not going back to that. There's no way I can "tend to friendships" that I have around the world through other means of email or phone calls.

And I literally CANNOT give it a shot. My business is dependent on it as well as things like Twitter and Instagram and so forth.

Being able to quit easily is a privilege for some and I think you missed what was being said in the article.

[hueymahl]

6. Like I said, I probably don't have much in common with the author

I appreciate some people find it to be a very important part of their lives. I do still wonder if even those people are overvaluing it.

But if you understand that you and your information are the product and that Facebook's sole reason for existence is to monetize its products (you and ever other user of facebook) and you are willing to make that trade, then by all means do not delete your account. That is absolutely your choice.

As far as your business use goes, I get that. My business uses it also. I'm able to separate my business persona from my personal - is that possible in your case? Just curious.

[Blue_Adept]

7. Not able to be separated

My business is essentially me and I run multiple business pages for that. The "personal" account is also where I interact with the range of players in my industry, half of which work self-promotion for gigs, so it's not something that can be walked away from.

[hueymahl]

9. Makes sense

You clearly know a lot more about the site than I do. Is there anything in particular that you think should be fixed or regulated?

[Blue_Adept]

10. The regulation side really comes down to what needs to be applied across the internet

But it's not going to be fixed. It's like the EULA agreements that we all click and sign without reading. It'll be lawyered up the wazoo and we never really know.

[RockCreek]

8. It's central to many lost animal sites

I am looking for a lost pet. Many or even most lost animal sites depend on it for posting and communication. I've used it more for this than anything before. I have doing that, but it has become an essential tool in that works in this country at least.

[ismnotwasm]

11. Im not going to delete it.

I’ve had an account for 4 years, (one of my daughters made me an account because she lives several states away) and I found myself naturally backing away from it, as far as silly posts. I never had personal info in my profile. I’m part of a couple groups I really like though. I have certain friends I only talk to through it.

I could live without it. I know any number of people who live without it.

That being said, most apps are pretty clear they are going to use your data, (and this isn’t an excuse, it’s just I’m not shocked that this happened) just When I saw ads target me clearly through various interests and presumed age, I knew data was gathered, and ads were targeting who the data thought I was. I also knew that a lot of the political memes that proliferated were bullshit. Why? I truth-checked them. Accurate information takes a little work, this is true.

It will be interesting to see how Facebook responds to all this.