A lot of noise has been made recently due to the screening of the Netflix documentary “Social Dilemma” which sharply criticizes the way in which social media affects the lives of their users.
A central argument of the documentary is the following: the algorithm that facebook uses to adapt the content that is promoted to each user to their own preferences, in essence creates a vicious circle as it polarizes society by strengthening what separates us and canceling the possibility of diversity.
This criticism is particularly serious as it raises a very sensitive issue related to political communication, propaganda and accusations of attempting to influence voters.
Maybe that’s why Facebook did not let this go, and issued a statement – a response to Netflix, listing 7 points on which, in the opinion of the popular social networking platform, the documentary criticism was unfounded. The truth is that Social Dilemma has shaken up issues related to the operation of social media that preoccupy more and more people with increasing intensity. It is also true, however, that algorithm customization seems to serve both the user and the service provider. How everyone will use it is in the end… a matter of perception.
