Is America changing its relationship status with Facebook?
The social networking staple has been hit hard with questions about inadequate protection of user data, its role in the spread of misinformation, and an insufficient response to the site being used for election meddling in the United States and abroad.
Are these concerns affecting user habits and engagement on the site?
Founded almost 15 years ago, the global platform still attracts more than 2 billion active users each month as of June 2018.
On October 12, Facebook shared an update about a privacy hack which compromised about 30 million accounts. The company said the breach originated from a "vulnerability in Facebook’s code."
Earlier that same week, Facebook announced its first hardware product for pre-order: a voice-activated speaker for home use called "Portal," which features a screen, plus artificial intelligence-powered video camera and microphone features.
The tech company has acquired key competitors in recent years to capitalize on services like WhatsApp for direct messaging and the image-centric social network Instagram to offer an all-encompassing digital experience linked to a personal Facebook account.
Do you trust social networks to keep your information secure? As Facebook gets bigger, will its problems get better or worse?
How much does advertising factor into Facebook's revenue model and are the site's "smart" algorithms discriminatory?
Is there a responsible way to use Facebook and what are the potential psychological implications of daily use? If you've decided to stay on Facebook, are you using it differently now? If not, what made you decide to leave?
Will Facebook continue to be a dominant social media platform for business and personal use?
Guests:
- Aaron Smith, associate director of research for internet and technology at Pew Research Center
- Pamela Rutledge, director of the Media Psychology Research Center
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