I’m not sure why Mark Zukerberg decided to use the term “Newsfeed” for the string of posts that my friends put up on their own Facebook pages every day. I honestly wish I could go to one of the Q and A’s that he hosts for Facebook employees every Friday and ask that question.
My husband began using Facebook on a daily basis long before I did. He has 22 Friends. I have 269. (Google tells me the average Facebook user has 338 … so we’re both on the low side as compared to the other 2.7 billion users.) When I would look over at him fiddling around on his computer in the morning, I would ask, “What are you doing.” He’d reply, “Just checking my news feed.”
Silly me. I thought he was looking through the L.A. Times or the Curry Coastal Pilot. Not so.
Should any of us be surprised – not excluding Mark Zukerberg – that so many people use Facebook as a news source … and pretty much believe any site that calls itself “www.newsoutlet.com.”
And then there’s the problem with misleading ads. We know the Russians figured out how easy it is to influence Americans just by claiming that their “product” was “new” and “improved.” It doesn’t really matter what you might think their “product” was … what’s really scary is that they could sell so many Americans on anything!
I got into a Facebook conversation with a Friend (who is also a friend) the other day. She wondered why she had tried to post an ad and it was suggested she ask for a “human review.” She chose that option and is still waiting for her “human review.” It’s been two days. Maybe they’re just saying that that there are humans involved. Maybe there are no humans to approve her ad?
Can’t Facebook deal with their 2 billion plus users faster than that? That’s only 56,397 users for each employee to keep in line. One source says that FB adds 500,000 new users every day. Most of those users post in one of 42 languages other than English. So what’s the problem, Facebook?
The short answer is that Facebook has bigger fish to fry. It’s not that Mark Zukerberg doesn’t care about each of Facebook’s two billion users, it’s just that when a system is in crisis, priorities must change. Mark would really like to have a real human being to check over each ad within 24 hours, and one day soon he might. I’m not sure what happened with everybody’s pictures didn’t show up for a couple of hours … but my limited knowledge of how the FB algorithm works makes it easy for me to speculate about the reasons. What I know for sure is that Priority #1 right now is what to do about the really bad people who have figured out how to use this new technology for evil.
My concern is what’s going to happen if good people refuse to use Facebook … or continue to use it in ways which were never intended?
When are we going to take responsibility for our own Facebook footprint and start checking the bloggers who can so easily set up a site and convince themselves that their opinion is real NEWS because they get so many “Likes”? When are we going go back to getting our NEWS from the credible sources that we’ve always trusted … and think of our “Newsfeeds” as a way to see our Friend’s cute cats and grandchildren?
Terms like “Fake News” and “Filter Bubbles” are making it difficult for us to figure out what’s really happening in the world these days. People seem to be blaming social media … but like any other new phenomenon, technology like this is neither good nor bad in itself – it’s how we use it that makes the difference.
My son went to work for Facebook a few months ago, so I’ve become interested in looking at my own on-line behavior. I remembered one morning long before I started this process when I asked my husband what he does when he goes to his Facebook page in the morning. He replied, “I just check my News Feed.” He’s a man of few words and didn’t offer a further explanation, so I didn’t ask and just assumed that I knew what he meant.
I may have noticed that little word “News Feed” in the upper left corner of my page, but had never clicked on it. My assumption was that Richard was just checking the news online since I know he keeps up with what’s going on in the world. It never occurred to me that when I opened my own Facebook page that’s what I was seeing – not his News Feed, but my own. I certainly never thought of what I was seeing as “News” because I was just seeing pictures of cats or grandchildren, links to websites that my friends like, or jokes that someone felt worth sharing.
Once I figured out that the long string of new posts I see everyday is called a News Feed, it became clear to me why mine is totally different from my husband’s. I set it up that way! I didn’t realize that’s what I was doing, but when I thought about how I use Facebook, it became pretty obvious.
Since my career in mathematics ended with Geometry in the 10th grade, I’m not going to try to explain what my son told me about how Facebook’s filtering system works. But I do know this: There’s nobody at Facebook deciding what I see or what I don’t see. I’m doing it all by myself. Whenever I “Like” something – “Share” something – “Follow” something – buy something …. or fall prey to one of those little “Click-bait” links on the right side of my page, I’m providing information so that the giant ALGORITHM at Facebook can decide what I want to see. After a while I’ve created what we’re now calling a Red Bubble or a Blue Bubble.
So that’s why I’m now beginning to think in shades of purple. I’ve known for a long time that I am not “Red” … but I have realized that I’m certainly not “True Blue” either. In fact, I agree with much of what my “Red” friends post. So now I’m going to choose the “shade of purple” that I’d like my bubble to be. The giant data base at Facebook keeps track of everything I do on my page, so I can be sure that I’ll get more of whatever I pay attention to. When I tell it what I like – I’ll get more of that. Where I go, who I know (and even who they know and where they go) will be taken into account. You’ll have to decide for yourself whether you think that’s a good thing or a bad thing – but the bottom line is that it is what it is. I believe that the only way this “cyber-civil war” is going to come to an end is for us to mix it up a little. Add a bit of red to your blue bubble – or a little blue to your red one. Listen more. React less. With apologies to Alice Walker, I’ll paraphrase a line in her book that just came to mind: “God gets pissed when we don’t notice the color purple.”
In January 2004 Mark Zuckerberg was inspired to write the code for Facebook after a somewhat unfortunate experiment with a site he and his buddies at Harvard called “Facemash.” Even at 19 years old, it didn’t take him long to realize that he had created something unique and worth pursuing. So that summer he left Harvard with a few friends and moved his venture to a rented house in Palo Alto, the heart of California’s Silicon Valley. I keep wondering if he ever thought things would move so fast. My guess is that he probably did since he must have been familiar with the book Bill Gates published in 1999 called Business @ the Speed of Thought.
I seriously doubt, however, that Mark ever thought Facebook would become the political phenomenon that it has – and certainly not that anyone would use it as their primary news source. Real “Fake News” sites are now shared daily … and politicians can just hint that a legitimate story is “Fake” and people who chose to live in their own private bubbles are quick to believe.
So here we are … Connecting and Sharing with our Friends at an astronomical speed. Our Red Bubbles and Blue Bubbles are moving farther and farther apart like the Starship Enterprise at Warp 2, and nobody seems to be slowing down long enough to even see what is happening.
As I said in the beginning, these thoughts have been meandering through my mind since my tour of the Facebook headquarters shortly after my son went to work there. I know that Facebook is doing a lot to counteract the effects of Fake News and filter bubbles, but I also know that I need to become more conscious of my own on-line behavior.
Below, in no particular order are some things that have come to mind.
LEARN FACEBOOK’S MISSION: “To give people the power to share and make the world more open and connected.” That’s it. Every Facebook employee knows that mission statement by heart and can repeat it on call. Facebook was never intended to be a media source. Before I Share, Like, or Click on anything, I’m trying to think about whether what I’m doing will help heal or further polarize our country?
MAKE FRIENDS – both on and off-line – who hold political views that are different from yours. There’s so much emotion fueling this conversation these days that you might need to practice talking to strangers on-line rather that to risk close relationships. I would also suggest that you start talking with the people I have come to think of as “leaners.” They may “lean” to the right or “lean” to the left, but we can talk because we’ve learned to listen to and learn from each other – rather than to just debate and stroke our own egos.
RESIST TEMPTATION. Quite often I open a link to a website or a YouTube that is really, really funny … but is also something that would most definitely inflame some of my “other-leaning” friends. I will admit that in those cases I might share it with the choir (ie. those folks who share my “leanings” and need some comic relief) but even that I do carefully knowing that it really does give the other “side” more ammunition.
WATCH OUT FOR “PARTISAN ZOMBIES.” I’m not sure how widespread that term might be because the first time I ever heard it used was in a blog post by Michael Lind. He explains the difference between the two strains of Zombies this way: “Ordinary zombies eat the brains of other people. Partisan zombies eat their own brains.” “A partisan zombie, Lind writes, “is someone who uncritically adopts, as a personal credo, the current platform of the Democratic or Republican Party in its entirety. Partisan zombies come in two types: checklist conservatives and litmus-test liberals.” I will occasionally try to engage one of these people in rational conversation – but it’s never been very productive and I’ve always ended up more frustrated than when I started. http://thesmartset.com/attack-of-the-partisan-zombies/
BE INTENTIONAL: Create your own filter bubble in your own unique shade of purple. Before you click on anything, ask yourself if it truly represents who you want to be in the world. Slow down. Think before you share.
SLOW DOWN! Take time to reflect and listen. As yourself WHY? It might be a good idea to keep a journal where you can process your own thoughts before you share them with the world. John Dewey said “We do not learn from experience; we learn from reflecting on experience.”
And finally … USE THE TOOLS that are built into Facebook for just this purpose. I was always afraid to click on “Report Post” under the little V to the right of each post. I was never sure what would happen and I didn’t want to get anyone in trouble. Now I know that’s not the case. In fact, it’s interactive and asks you questions about the post you are reporting. At the end there’s even a place that looks like you can write a comment, but the last time I tried that didn’t work. Since I know that Facebook is a work in progress, I’m thinking the day will come when there will be real people who are trained to answer those comments. For the time being, however, it looks like we are still just communicating with a giant ALGORITHM.
Since I’ve been thinking along these lines, it seems like every day I run into more people, websites, and other resources that are specifically designed to bridge the gap between the two sides in this civil war. Below are some I’ve found recently – and I would love for you to suggest others in the comments.
Here are some other resources that have shown up since I started thinking this way. Please feel free to comment or add some of your own ….
WEBSITES:
CIVIL POLITICS:“Our mission at CivilPolitics.org is to educate groups and individuals who are trying to bridge moral divisions by connecting them with scientific research in this domain.”
GREEN TEA COALITION This one just came to my attention recently and seems to be a movement within the Republican party of people concerned about environmental issues.
FACEBOOK GROUPS:
PROGRESSIVE CHRISTIANITY AND POLITICS This is a closed group “for people who are politically and theologically progressive to discuss spirituality, theology, politics and policies for the betterment of the world.” I just joined it this morning … so, as with everything I’m posting here, I don’t have much experience with it. I will edit as I feel I need to as I get more information.
BALANCED NEWS SOURCES:
ALL SIDES.COM My friend Shari Litsey recommended this one in the comments to this post on Facebook. It looks like a great place to get both sides of every story.
THE WEEK MAGAZINE We subscribe to the print version of this magazine and my husband reads much of it on-line as well. It summarizes op-ed pieces from the right, left, and center after each story and also gives deep background on some of the most important issus of the week. I like it because it give an overview of what’s happening around the world in pop culture, real estate, entertainment and the arts as well as in politics.
APPS: I’m not listing anything here yet since I don’t use my cellphone for news. However, my friend Clint Phillips has been trying to get me to use two Twitter apps that help him follow particular members of Congress and issues that he’s interested it. I’ll post them as soon as I figure them out!
CURRICULUM: Clint Phillips tagged me on a Facebook post this morning and it made me realize that I want to add another category to this list. While I believe that it’s important to work with people “across the aisle,” it also occurs to me that it might be easier for our Senators to do that in Congress that than it is for us in our own living rooms. Watching the Senate hearing yesterday made me “see purple” in a way. As I watched Republicans and Democrats asking well crafted, probing questions in order to get to the truth made me realize that our system really does still work. Complex, systemic change, however, takes time … and can be very frustrating. One way that I keep from becoming overwhelmed is to focus on the future – on the “leaders-in-training” who will be in charge 20+ years from now … in the year 2040. I hope to see many more programs like this one and will add them to this category as I become aware of them. Feel free to make suggestions!
They say that every ending is a new beginning. I’m not sure if “they” really say that … but it’s a thought that has occurred to me a great many times over the years.
The first time was in 1986 when my kids and I were on our way to a family reunion in Canada. That was long before any of us had heard of MP3’s, iPods, or even CD’s, so we kept ourselves entertained by taking turns choosing cassette tapes. Our favorite was Jimmy Buffet’s “Last Mango in Paris.” Paul, Shannon and I knew all the words and passed the time by singing along.
I’m sitting here right now amazed that with a few clicks of a mouse I can pull up the last song on that tape … the one that that has stuck in my mind now for 30 years and pops up every time I have the feeling that another ending has opened the way into a whole new world …
(OMG and LOL 😉 ! What would I have thought “a few clicks of a mouse” would mean in 1986?)
I’m in this mood this morning because Paul took me on a tour the Facebook Headquarters in Menlo Park yesterday. Within the first few minutes I realized that my dream for Leadership 2020 has come true – and that an important chapter of my life has come to an end. It was a moment that I want to capture and remember forever.
I’ll tell you about that moment later, but first I have to bring you up to speed…
Paul met me in Lobby 4 of Building 20 after I left my car with the (free) valet. The first thing I noticed about the building is that it looked like it was not really finished. Even the enormous wall behind the plywood staircase looked as if they were just testing colors and had never decided which one to use.
Moving right along, he pointed to the place where we were standing on the enormous model of Building 20. (I’m probably going to overuse the word “enormous” as I write about this .. but that might be unavoidable…)
(Notice the small posters on the wall behind Paul. They are pages from an amazing book by Susan O’Malley called Advice from my 80-year-old Self . It’s a particularly special book for Paul and Debbie – but that’s a story for later. Click on the title to buy or download … )
What the model does not show is the 9-acre roof garden. When I was inside the building it almost felt like being outside because of the enormous skylights.
I might not get back to the roof in this post so here’s a picture of Paul that reminded me of his kids playing in Kids Town in Brookings when they were little . . .
. . . and the rooftop restaurant that serves only Grilled Cheese!
Paul told me that between this building and 1 Hacker Way there are 12 restaurants, that serve 30,000 meals a day … for free.
“Uh … what do you mean, Paul, ‘free?'”
“Just what I said, Mom … free.”
Most of the restaurants are located on Hacker Way … which reminded me a lot of Main Street at Disneyland. It’s across the Bayfront Expressway from Facebook Way and there’s a great view of it from the roof.
Another view from the roof was of the enormous property next door that Is being excavated for the next phase.
We used the handicapped access to the roof … and I couldn’t help but snap a picture of the sign … which says a lot in itself 🙂 !
Back inside, we approached the large buffet style restaurant. The first thing I noticed was one enormous wall covered entirely with red, orange and yellow plastic tableware. At first I thought it was a piece of modern art just arranged randomly. It wasn’t until I turned around after passing it that I noticed it was the name of the restaurant:
Instead trying to mention all the other restaurants, it would just be easier for you to check them out here: Restaurants at Facebook.
Note – the number of employees (8,500) and the net worth ($150 billion) in that article disagree with the ones in this month’s Fortune Magazine, but Lauren Hepler wrote about the restaurants at FB two and a half years ago! Here’s this month’s Fortune Magazine article where Mark Zuckerberg was namedBusiness Person of the Year:
Paul and I were in a bit of a hurry because we were trying to get back to Facebook Way hoping to catch a glimpse of the cast of the new Star Wars movie. I never found out exactly what they were doing because we arrived to find them tearing down the stage in the room where they had been …
The only place we stopped on our way back was at a frozen yogurt shop. The pastries looked amazing – but we resisted. I asked Paul why no one looked like they were gaining weight, and he told me about the first “Facebook 15.” I guess that with all the walking, and the fact that most of the people I saw working were standing at adjustable computer desks – not to mention the walk or bike ride to Hacker Way and the full service gym … most of them lose their “FB 15” pretty easily.
Oh yes … I forgot to mention the free bicycles. When I left my car in the parking garage I noticed the rows of cute blue bicycles that I assumed employees could rent when they got tired of walking or didn’t have time. That’s the first time was wrong. Also free.
I’m still getting to “the moment” – the one when I realized I was finished withLeadership 2020 and ready to shift my focus to Leadership 2040.
Everywhere I looked I saw examples of how this 21st-Century business leader encourages creativity and supports “the whole employee” – just as we should be doing for “the whole child” in our schools. One example is the state-of-the-art wood shop. I assume that you have to pay for materials, but other than that, it’s available to anyone, anytime.
The nearby print shop also gets a lot of use:
Oh … something else before I get back to my “moment.” Possibly not appropriate, but just too funny not to mention …
I stopped in the rest room on the way out and Paul told me to feel free to pick up a toothbrush (free) if I needed one …
I was still laughing about that when I closed the stall door and noticed the “Weekly Push.” No kidding!
It’s the weekly company update … probably the only report that Mark Zuckerberg wants every employee to read. What I find to be the most interesting about that is that this might be the only piece of paper that these “kids” read all day. Everything else is on a screen. It might also be the only moment they slow down enough to really process what’s going on and reflect on their part in all of this. For my part, however, I was in a hurry to leave, so I just took a picture because I was feeling overwhelmed by the astounding influence this company is having on the future of the world.
Ok … so back to the my “moment” – the one that felt was an ending and a beginning at the same time.
I don’t have a picture of it because even though Paul said I could take as many pictures as I wanted (as long as I didn’t stop to focus 😉 ), he said I couldn’t take this one. We had just walked past his own place in the building, the one he pointed out to me on the Smart Board when we first came in.
Just beyond his computer station, he pointed out a large glass central conference room that I hadn’t even noticed and said “there’s Mark.”
I glanced up and saw the face I’ve seen in pictures so many times before, laughing and talking to a couple of other people at the table. I later learned that one of the people was Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook’s COO and author ofLean In and Option B. Paul said they were probably planning the weekly Q & A that he was going to try to attend at 4:00.
What struck me the most as we were walking through this amazing complex was that although there were hundreds of people standing or sitting at computers, walking, talking and working, the energy was relaxed and calm, and the huge room was almost silent.
When I saw this 32-year-old who is running a 350 billion dollar company where the average age of his over 15,000 employees is 34 … I flashed back to another life-changing moment. It was during the summer of 1997 when I was driving back home to teach another year of 5th grade.
When the second one was over, I continued driving the last 100 miles thinking about leadership and emotional intelligence. That’s when it dawned on me that some of the kids in my class, 10-year-olds in 1997, would be the leaders in the year 2020 – the ones I would count on long after I retired. I got very excited about that thought and began planning a leadership program at my school that I would talk to my principal about as soon as I got back. Instead, however, through a series of unexpected synchronicities, I found myself retired from classroom teaching and living 700 miles north by the end of that year.
Four years later, in 2001, I wrote about that whole experience on a website that was anything but “user friendly.” Since I never learned how to use the software program that created the site, and couldn’t afford to pay a webmaster, it will forever remain just like I left it in 2004:
What’s most interesting to me about this website, though, is is that if I changed the year from 2020 to 2040 – I wouldn’t write anything different today.
That brings me to the moment that changed my whole perspective. Just after I saw Mark. I looked around and realized that these are those 10-year-olds who were in 5th grade in 1997 … and Mark Zuckerberg was only 12 when I left teaching!
TWELVE! Yikes! My grandson Mason is 12! Reese is 10 … and Miles is only 7!
So once again I am going to ask that same question:
Who will our leaders be in the year 2040?
The next logical question is whether or not our schools are preparing them to be the kind of leaders the world will need when I may or may not even be around to see it? How many potential leaders are we losing because they are spending most of their waking hours preparing to take tests rather than practicing skills for success in the 21st century? Neale Donald Walshe said that the problem with our world is that we are preparing students for “our past and not their future.” It seems to me that we need to stop and think about that for awhile …
My tour of Facebook energized me and made me realize that it’s time that educators rethink our ideas about “school.” Perhaps a system that was designed by the Committee of 10 in 1893 needs some major revision as we approach the second half of the 21st century. After my tour I decided to try my hand at starting a Facebook group of my own. To my amazement it took me less than a minute to set up!
Now that I know Facebook’s mission statement, I hope that this group will be a place where educators can connect and share ideas that will help us prepare kids for their future and not our past.
I’m still learning how to administer a group like this, but I’d love for you check it out and join me if you find it interesting 🙂 !
