My Experience With Facebook

I have been a member of Facebook since 2009, joining my first year of high school. Despite using it frequently, I stopped using social media completely in 2014. After a two-year break, I started using Facebook again in 2016. I use it often now and noticed a pattern of availability cascades that started with COVID-19. When Facebook users broke the news about COVID-19, I distinctly recall seeing the image of a Chinese girl wearing a mask with the caption “COVID-19 breakout in Wuhan, China”. The same image appeared in my newsfeed periodically. Eventually, that is all I saw. Information about COVID-19 filled my entire newsfeed. This is because when a post gets a ??or an ??, it substantially increases the reach. Each time someone reacted to a COVID-19 post, it drew more attention. This started the pattern.

On May 25th, 2020, a man by the name of George Perry Floyd Jr. was killed during an arrest. This event sparked public outcry and led to the Black Lives Matter movement, which was felt on an international scale. Then, on April 20th, 2021, a police officer shot and fatally wounded Ma’Khia Bryant during an altercation. This event made headline news before having all the information. The body camera footage of the officer released displayed an individual in harm’s way and the officer doing what he could at that moment to protect the potential victim from harm. On June 6th, 2021, a vehicle struck Talat Azfaal, Salmon Azfaal, Midiha Salmon, and Yumnah in London, Ontario. The media immediately labeled this event a terrorist attack. It went viral, receiving immediate attention, and sparked a national response of solidarity. Currently, the accused is awaiting trial. On May 28th, 2021, they found 200 bodies near the site of Kamloops Indian Residential School. As the investigation continues, there have been over 1300 bodies found as of September 29th, 2021. This has sparked national interest and an outpouring of support. On September 11 and 12, 2021, there were accusations of 30 females being sexually assaulted at Western University in London, Ontario. When Facebook users posted about this accusation, it received immediate attention. Within hours, it was the headline in the London Free Press. After investigations concluded, police say they have found no evidence of any wrongdoing.?

?Each of these events caused an availability cascade, similar to throwing a rock in a calm pond. The larger the rock, the larger the ripples. When an event happens that triggers people, it gets them emotionally invested. As a result, you have widespread information about the story that may not provide the entire picture. Emotions and headlines that encourage you to engage fuel this information. The headlines tell only pieces of information, but they intend to make you feel an emotional response. When you engage with a post using a ??or an ??, it expands the reach. Expanded reach causes even more people to engage with the post, and it goes even further. The news carried through Facebook is instantly available and people want immediate action. Unfortunately, if a news story breaks on social media, those involved in that story must manage their lives under complete media coverage.?

In closing, Facebook is a very powerful algorithm that affects everyone who uses it. The information you see, the reactions you make. Emotion fuels people. However, information isn’t always accurate when this occurs. This immediate spread of information leaves a lot of questions unanswered and pushes a narrative of what people engage with. These cascades send massive waves of emotion through the platform, leaving no time for fact-checking. We must work harder to keep emotions in check and strive to confirm facts before contributing to the ripples.