This article will primarily focus on Facebook and Twitter since these two platforms played instrumental roles in the actions that led to the U.S. Capitol Riots and were used throughout Donald Trump’s presidency.
The U.S. Capitol Riots on January 6 were shocking and alarming for all of us. It underscored the fragility of our democratic system and social media’s effectiveness as a communication tool.
Donald Trump was recently acquitted from any involvement of the riots. Whether you agree or disagree with Trump’s presidency, his use of social media showcased the power and influence these platforms have on our society. He was able to mobilize a movement and give voice to a faction who felt ignored.
A brief timeline
SixDegrees.com was the first social network launched in 1997[i]. It was created to connect users with friends. Hot or Not was released three years later enabling users to rate others on their attractiveness. Fast forward four years to the launch of Facebook and the rest is social media history.
Social media networks have transcended their humble and in some cases, superficial beginnings. They are not just a forum where you update your relationship status. Today, they have the influence to topple down corrupt governments, propel an activist movement like #BLM and #MeToo, “cancel” misbehaving influencers and fuel fringe groups to organize and devise harmful, violent attacks against others.
How did these social media networks with such light-hearted origination stories become global behemoths who are now influencing our political and cultural landscape? Let’s take a look at two important tipping points:
The 2008 Obama campaign
The first time we saw a presidential candidate effectively use social media to win the vote was Barack Obama in his successful 2008 presidential election campaign. Social media was new and untouched by politicians. Obama would change all that. His team were able to successfully attain 5 million supporters on 15 different social networks. More than half of those (3 million) were on Facebook compared to his opponent Senator John McCain who only had 600,000 followers.[ii] At the time, social media was seen as something for teens but Obama’s win proved it to be a strategic and powerful communication tool laying the ground work for Donald Trump’s communication strategy.
The Arab Spring
We first witnessed social media’s ability to build community and social movements during the “Arab Spring” back in 2011. Social media, specifically Twitter, through the effective use of hashtag #Jan25, helped Egyptians organize protests known as the Tahir Uprising, against Hosni Mubarak’s 30-year dictatorship[iii]. This movement had ripple effects bringing down corrupt dictators across the Middle East and Northern Africa. According to Hootsuite’s article , “social media networks were critical tools for organizers in mobilizing, publicizing and shaping opinion”. This form of activism was also used most recently during the #MeToo movement where victims of sexual assault in the film industry shared their story and outed their predators.
Social media has brought about tremendous positive change, however, here’s why social media should be regulated:
- Access to billions of users and their data: Facebook has over 2.8 billion users while Twitter has over 330 million. That represents 40% of the world’s population giving these companies access to a wealth of data. The sheer volume is reason enough to regulate these platforms but it’s also how they use this data that should raise concern. Not only can they track the amount of time you spend on their platform, but track your interests, demographics, and access your content. In Hootsuite’s article on the History of Social Media, in 2008 “it was revealed that Facebook allowed a researcher from Cambridge Analytica—who had worked on Donald Trump’s presidential campaign—to harvest data from 50 million users without their consent.” The article goes on to mention that “$126 million Americans were exposed to content by Russian agents during the elections” by accessing Facebook data. Both of these instances demonstrate breach of trust and misuse of data.
- Algorithms strengthen prejudice and stereotypes: Facebook, Twitter and other platforms’ revenue models are simple, sell ad space. The longer a user spends on the platform, the more time they will see the ads. What makes this more effective than let’s say CBS or NBC is their enhanced analytics and algorithms. They can curate and customize content according to their user’s preferences. A recent study found that “81% of YouTube users say they at least occasionally watch the videos suggested by the platform’s recommendation algorithm, and that these recommendations encourage users to watch progressively longer content as they click through the videos suggested by the site”. The risk? Users who show interest in fringe topics that may be harmful to the general public. Additionally, Katie Kaplan, BDO Canada’s Tax Partner and GTA Technology Leader commented that algorithms can be harmful to those who are easily influenced and uneducated. They may be at higher risk to believe in radical thoughts or movements. Algorithms increase user engagement but may also be responsible for perpetuating stereotypes, biases or misinformation.
- Driven by user-created content: Everyone who carries a phone now has the ability to become a pseudo journalist without the credentials, ethics or standards that a professional journalist abides by. Unfiltered and live content directly from the eyes of the public have given light to police brutality and given victims a forum to share their stories. However, giving this access to the general public from a potentially biased lens or someone who has a darker and deeper agenda is very dangerous. The National Technology & Life Sciences Leader at BDO Canada, Peter Matutat stated that “newspapers are held to higher standards where sources and information have to be vetted”. He goes on to say that “publishers are also held accountable”. Furthermore, journalists and the press are bound by a code of ethics that ensures the news is independent and thoroughly validated and researched. Social media networks are currently protected by Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act that grants them immunity from content shared, posted and hosted by third-parties[v].
Social media is beyond anything we’ve seen before. Being a marketer, I appreciate its ability to connect and share content effortlessly. Its influence is powerful and history-making. When used in the wrong hands and for negative purposes it can have violent and destructive consequences. To protect our democracy and its citizens, it’s essential that they be regulated in the following areas:
- Controls over data privacy, usage, and consent.
- Verify and validate information and sources claiming to be positioned as “news”.
- Culpability on user accounts who incite violence, hate speech or spread inaccurate information.
But the question is, are we too preoccupied with protecting our freedom of speech that we are willing to sacrifice social safety?
[i] https://blog.hootsuite.com/history-social-media/
[ii] https://publicrelationssydney.com.au/how-social-media-won-obama-the-us-election/
[ii] https://blog.hootsuite.com/history-social-media/
[ii] https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/28/business/section-230-internet-speech.html
The upshot 