Week #5 - MBA 6101 - Don't Be Evil

What I have read of Frances Haugen’s testimony is alarming.  But, what’s most troubling for me, is that I’m not at all surprised.  In hindsight, at the time, Haugen’s disclosures barely registered.  This was not FB’s first scandal that centered around the misuse (abuse) of end user data— Beacon in 2008, a FTC investigation into FB violating its own privacy agreements between 2009 and 2014, and the Cambridge Analytica scandal in 2018. 

I use LinkedIn, Reddit, and Twitter.  I was never a particularly heavy FB user to being with.  I would post semi-regularly, comment here and there, and hit that “like” button when the urge struck.  But even an infrequent scrolling binge would leave me feeling the cognitive equivalent of eating a party-sized bag of Cheetos downed with a Super Big Gulp of Pepsi— a coagulated caked on mess of corn meal, fillers, and orange “cheese” flavoring that couldn’t be washed off, compelled to eat more, inevitably succumbing to nausea, a headache, and regret.     

I view Twitter as FB light.  I primarily follow artists, bands, actors, podcasters and authors.  My first follow was Bob Newhart.  I follow local and national news feeds and a handful of UFO groups.  I rarely tweet, but when I do, it’s usually abuse directed at my cable company.  Despite my innocuous follows, my feed is full of… trash.  It has become aggravating to the point that I will likely delete my Twitter account ahead of this year’s midterm elections.          

I love tech.  I had my first “modern” computer when I was 14 (1994, it was a Gateway).  I dialed up onto the “information superhighway” a year later.  I remember a TA in college introducing me to Google.  I had a Gmail account when it was still in Beta and by invitation only.   I don’t think tech is inherently evil or harmful.  But, I am skeptical.  I’m convinced that FB listens or (at least listened) and no one (no one) can convince me otherwise.  I have not had a FB created app on my phone in years.  I will not use Instagram, Messenger, or WhatsApp. 

A quote I frequently come across when reading criticisms of tech is “if something is free, you are the product.” No matter how well-intentioned Congress’s efforts are to minimize the misuse of end users’ data by social media platforms, as long as the end users are the product, Big Tech will be incentivized to find ways to exploit their users.