Ladies and gentlemen, pull up a chair, because it looks like Mark Zuckerberg, our favorite billionaire puppet-master, has decided to pull the strings a little tighter this election season. That’s right, folks, Meta is taking a giant step back from politics. You might remember when Zuck used to brag about Facebook’s clout in the political arena—helping millions connect with candidates, influencing elections, all that jazz. Well, those days are over! Now, he’s all about keeping your social media feeds as politically sterile as a surgical ward.
It seems that after getting some heat for letting folks organize a little shindig at the Capitol on January 6, Zuckerberg had an epiphany: people don’t want to see politicians duking it out on their Facebook and Instagram feeds. So, what’s the plan? Dial down the political noise. Both the Biden and Trump camps have seen their engagement drop faster than the morals at a lobbyists’ convention—60% less engagement on Facebook and similar dips on Instagram.
And oh, Meta’s spokesperson, Dani Lever, is out there saying this is what the people want—less political chatter, more cat videos, I guess. But not everyone’s buying it. Top advisors from the Trump campaign are crying foul, calling it a shadow ban, while over in the academic corner, experts like Natalie Stroud are scratching their heads, wondering where everyone will get their political fix. Or maybe they’ll just tune out?
In this new, sanitized social media world, it’s like Zuck is saying, “Let them eat cake—just not at the political debate.”
So, folks, as we head into the 2024 elections with less political content popping up in our feeds, you’ve got to wonder: Are we better informed, or just better entertained? Stay tuned—or don’t, depending on what Zuckerberg decides you should see!
