When did Facebook become a news source?
There have been many changes over the decade that has become Facebook.
What started as something for connections on college has turned into connecting over 1 Billion people on the planet (I won’t go into my thoughts on the number of duplicate, double, fake or dead profiles which would lower that number by some 350 Million), regardless it’s still an impressive number of users.
In the early days, there was not much content.
Then it seemed Facebook morphed into apps and each time I turned around I was getting invited to do everything from planting flowers in a fake garden to planting virtual kisses.
Eventually, the platform changed again, and I spent more time ducking from sheep and octopus being thrown at me than actually reading anything.
The next generational move seemed to go towards an update of every brain fart, kid’s first poop, or the chocolate cookie that someone ate at lunch.
There were updates from people that seemed to just want some sort of voice out in the universe and felt like by just posting their status, that somehow their world would be a better place.
It certainly didn’t make my world a better place as Facebook never added (and still hasn’t to the day) an ability for me to filter the kind of information I want. (I had a suggestion years ago to let the user tag content as business or personal, and allow the ability to search or sort on that criteria as well).
What’s face book like now?
It’s a mash up of sponsored posts, viral videos with catchy headlines, and news articles.
Indeed, while I still continue to loath Facebook as I found it an irrelevant waste of time; it seems I’m spending more time on the platform as my source for news.
That’s right, crowd sourced news articles.
When I start my day and open my web browser, it is set for 8 tabs of different news sites. From there, I can peruse the news headlines from the various new sources I track, and find relevant or interesting.
Facebook is now becoming one of the “sources” I check. Not because they are a news site, but because the articles that my “friends” within Facebook are sharing are the items that bubble to the top or get posted on my wall.
Thus, I get to see what is being most viewed or sourced. Call it the wisdom of the crowds.
It seems much easier to just scroll down the list and see what is being recommended from such luminaries as Guy Kawasaki, Vint Cerf, Robert Tercek, Court Coursey, Tony Hsieh, Steve Case, Robert Scoble and others.
As much as I scan and read the news I’m interested in, I’m infinitely more interested in what others are reading.
So, when I’m now looking at Facebook as a news source, it leads me to wonder; what’s next?
I’ve already noticed that Facebook has added search results within the frame of their site.
Will it ever get to the point of when you’re looking for something; instead of saying “did you google it”, you’ll say, “did you Facebook it”?
My only thought is- I certainly hope not.