Metaa company that owns Facebookhas been targeted by a new lawsuit filed by the researcher Ethan Zuckermanprofessor ofUniversity of Massachusetts Amherst.
The researcher is working on a new instrument, named Unfollow Everything 2.0. This should allow Facebook users to disable news feed algorithmsto obtain an experience of use free from what is imposed by Meta.
For Zuckerman, in fact, social networks have too much control over which content to make visible or not. Given their diffusion and their communicative power, this can be very disturbing: at least potentially, social media can influence public opinion and even elections. Unfollow Everything 2.0 is abrowser extension which acts at the level of personalization of news feeds, with greater control by the user compared to the classic experience offered by Facebook.
However, it should be taken into account that the same extension collects data then used by Zuckerman’s research, aimed at understanding the impact of greater control on users’ online experiences.
Zuckerman against Zuckerberg: control over feed algorithms remains a delicate matter
Although in Europe something has moved from this point of view, through the introduction of the famous DSAthe issue of data processing from social platforms remains a very delicate issue.
On the one hand there are companies that, legitimately, must monetize their online business. On the other hand, their reach makes them attractive instruments even “politically”, with very few external controls regarding their work.
Ramya Krishnansenior lawyer of Knight Institute who handles the lawsuit, emphasizes that users should not be limited to the platform’s default settings. According to the professional, in fact, “Users are not required to accept Facebook as it is offered to them. The same statute that immunizes Meta from liability for its users’ speech gives users the right to decide what they see on the platform“.
Facebook recently lost a major lawsuit against Bright Dataa company that deals with data collection.