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This Day in Engadget History: Facebook reveals Trending Topics
Engadget has been around for 14 years and counting, which means our archives contain a veritable treasure trove of technology history. From notable reviews and news to the more mundane or ridiculous finds from across the internet, there's a lot to explore here. "This Day in Engadget History" will take you on a historical voyage as we look at what made the headlines in years past. Join us, won't you? On August 7th, 2013, Facebook revealed a homepage feature that seemed fairly innocuous, a way to keep people informed about and engaged in the hot issues of the day. Surely nothing could go wrong with such a simple tool, right? But hoo, boy, did it ever. After Trending Topics finally landed on the network in January 2014, it led to all kinds of trouble for Facebook.
Facebook nixes Trending section to prep for 'future news experiences'
Today, Facebook announced that it is getting rid of the Trending section on its social network. That doesn't mean that the focus is moving away from news, though. In a release, the company said that the feature would be removed to "make way for future news experiences on Facebook." Those features include the new breaking news label, a "Today In" feature that's currently in testing and news videos in the Watch tab.
Facebook tests split News Feed that keeps friends front and center
Facebook is currently testing a new dual-feed setup that separates Page-generated posts from ads and posts from friends, The Guardian reports. The trial is currently underway in six countries -- Bolivia, Guatemala, Cambodia, Slovakia, Serbia and Sri Lanka.
Facebook tests a feature that provides info on article publishers
Facebook is still working out how to reduce the reach of fake news and misinformation on its site and today, it starts testing a new feature that sounds like it might be pretty useful. When an article link is shared in someone's News Feed, there will now be a small "i" button that will bring up additional information about the publisher and article when clicked. It will include information from the publisher's Wikipedia page, a link to follow its Facebook Page, Trending and Related articles about the same topic and a graphic on where and how the article is being shared across Facebook. When any of that information isn't available, Facebook will say that explicitly. That in itself is pretty useful. For example, if there's no Wikipedia page for the publisher of the piece, it could mean it's not a reputable outlet.
Facebook adds a link to Trending News in the app's main menu
The redesigned Trending Topics section of Facebook is now called Trending News and the updates to this feature -- which were announced in May -- are now available to most US users on both iOS and Android devices. For iPhone users, Trending News also has its own direct link in the Facebook app's main navigation menu -- a feature that's in testing for Android, according to TechCrunch.
Facebook no longer personalizes trending news topics
Facebook vowed to alter how it handles its Trending topics feature as part of its bid to curb fake news and accusations of bias, and you're seeing two major changes on that front today. To start, it's adding headlines and sources next to those topics. You'll now have context as to why a subject is blowing up without having to click a thing. However, the bigger shift is in how Facebook decides what you see -- it's no longer personalizing stories to match your interests.
Facebook is still trending fake news stories
It's been six weeks after Facebook's "trending topics" section was publicly called out for promoting a blatantly false story about Megyn Kelly and very little -- if anything -- has changed. According to a new audit from the Washington Post, that Megyn Kelly incident was far from an isolated case.
Facebook highlights false news story in its trending topics
The usefulness of Facebook's "trending topics" feature has always been a bit questionable, but it's been under fire this year as the company battled accusations its human editors were filtering out "conservative" news stories. Today, Facebook is getting a bit more egg on its face: its trending topics area promoted a story about Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly being fired for supporting Hillary Clinton. As of this writing, that has not happened -- but the false story was still trending for hours on Facebook before finally getting pulled.
Facebook's board of directors re-elects Peter Thiel
Peter Thiel, the early Facebook investor and board member who admitted last month to secretly financing multiple lawsuits against Gawker Media, will officially remain on Facebook's executive board, Mashable reports today. COO Sheryl Sandberg had previously stated that Thiel would keep his position because he "did what he did on his own, not as a Facebook board member," but Monday's annual shareholder's meeting was the last chance for the board to acknowledge that his actions run counter to Facebook's own mission statement. During the vote, the shareholders voted to keep all board members who are up for re-election, including Thiel. Mark Zuckerberg, who has the overriding vote as founder and majority stakeholder, approved the decision.
Facebook meets with Glenn Beck and other conservatives this week
Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg talked about meeting leading conservatives to explain the social network's trending topics selection, and it's clear that he's not wasting any time while making that happen. The company has confirmed that Zuck will meet with "about a dozen" conservative figures on May 18th, including outspoken media persona Glenn Beck. It's not clear exactly how things will go down, although Beck maintains that it's partly about assuring the right wing that this furor "won't happen again" -- he's operating on the assumption that Facebook did something wrong, which isn't necessarily true. He hopes that former presidential (and vice presidential) candidate Carly Fiorina will be involved, but Facebook hasn't confirmed this yet.
Mark Zuckerberg chimes in on Facebook's trending topics
The swirling debate over how Facebook chooses stories for its trending topics section -- and whether it is muffling stories from politically conservative sources -- refuses to go away, and now the company's leader has spoken up. In a post on Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg revealed that soon he will invite "leading conservatives and people from across the political spectrum" to talk things over. He says the site is building a platform for all ideas, and says the company has found no evidence that an anonymous report of bias in its process is true.
Facebook adds Trending topics so you always know what's hot in your corner of the social universe
After several months of testing, Facebook is officially rolling out a new Trending feature that, just like on Twitter, lets users see what hot topics are dominating conversation on the social platform. The new Trending column, which will appear to the right of users' News Feeds, groups the most popular topics in a list and also displays a convenient headline summary alongside so you know why it's important. Facebook isn't just culling data from across its massive global reach and giving you a pulse on what the world-at-large is talking about, it's customizing this Trending feed based on your interests and friends. So clicking on any of these topics will take you a relevant post from a friend or a sponsored Page. Don't tweak, though, if you don't see Trending when you log on to Facebook for the day, as the feature's being introduced in phases globally. It's also only for the desktop as of now, though Facebook is currently testing it for mobile.
Facebook lets news organizations broadcast your trending topic discussions
Anyone else think that Twitter's love affair with TV has gotten those down in Menlo Park a little scared? Facebook has announced that broadcasters like CNN, NBC and Sky can now gain direct access to your public wall posts concerning trending topics and embed them in their shows. That means that your insightful or controversial opinions on Shark Week might be sharing screen time with Al Roker without your explicit say-so. News organizations will also be able to generate real-time infographics to gauge the state of the nation and show, to an unprecedented level of detail, just how many of you care about twerking at any one time.
Facebook unveils Trending Topics, makes Graph Search available everywhere in US English
Facebook must be a little envious of Twitter's ability to seize on trends -- it just started experimenting with Trending Topics, a Timeline card that shows the hottest subjects on the social network. Users can tap a trend to see both public comments and posts, whether or not the contributors are friends. The service is only being tested with a small number of those using Facebook's mobile website right now. If you're too impatient for that, the company has a consolation prize: Graph Search is now available to everyone visiting the site in US English, regardless of where they live. The expansion comes with the end to a handy privacy tool that lets members see who can search their Timeline, but Facebook claims that few have been using this feature -- we shouldn't miss it too much.
Bing news search now shows related topics and personalities
Microsoft's Bing may be a boy among men in the search-engine wars, but that's not stopping it from piling on new features. The latest are in its news search, where it just added a "trending topics" carousel that shows timely info in the same category as your query (see the above image), along with a sidebar that displays personalities "you might also like." Clicking on either will bring up further news results, and Bing also said it's now extended the article index several years back in time compared to the curt two-week period it had before. It's an interesting change-up over Google's Knowledge Graph, and Microsoft needs all the help it can get in search, given recent survey results.
Twitter updates iOS and Android apps, lets users see what's trending around the world
Twitter's developers are a busy bunch, (allegedly) working on an app for Glass and updating code for Macs in the last week. Today, they released yet another round of new software for iOS and Android, bringing some new functionality along with the requisite bug fixes and unnamed "improvements." After updating, both sets of users will be able to see trends from around the world, as opposed to just those happening in the immediate area. Additionally, iOS users can now invite friends to join Twitter from within the app -- in case anyone still knows an unfortunate soul who's not already pecking out 140-character missives -- and both author and retweeter names will be included in replies to RT's. Meanwhile, Android users also received easier access to swap between accounts and change settings using the menu button. If you haven't grabbed the update already, well, you know the drill, your download awaits.
MIT prof and student discover algorithm for predicting trending Twitter topics
Predicting the future of Twitter's trending topics is, as of right now, an impossibility. But two folks at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology may have cracked the code with an algorithm they're saying predicts -- with 95 percent accuracy -- the topics that will trend in the next hour and a half. The prediction has even been calculated as high as four to five hours ahead of time with the same level of accuracy. Not too bad! Of course, beyond impressing friends with the predictions, the algorithm has direct implications for the likes of Twitter itself -- being able to sell ads against trending topics could benefit the social media company enormously in its ongoing quest to monetize. At any rate, it's distinctly less dangerous sounding than the last idea we heard involving Twitter and predictions. The algorithm will be presented next week at MIT's Interdisciplinary Workshop on Information and Decision in Social Networks, should you wish to dig into the nitty gritty of the math behind the madness.
Google+ quietly gets trending topics, dares you to search for it
Did the addition of "What's Hot" not satiate your burning desire for real-time happenings on Google's social network? You're in luck, as Mountain View's quietly added another way to aggregate popular content on Google+. Upon initiating a search, a list of trending topics appears to the right, exposing what's currently en vogue on Mountain View's social network. Functionally, it's a dead ringer for Twitter's trending topics and unlike "What's Hot," won't bombard you with random unrelated, but popular, posts. Will it pass muster as an official feature, or will it be left to linger in the ether? We'll find out, but Google if you're listening, we're watchin'.
Google+ learns about trending topics, photo filters and how to appease Google Apps users
Still having a blast adding people into circles? Well hold on tight, because Mountain View just introduced some worthy upgrades to its social network. First up is a new feature dubbed "What's Hot" which, much like trending topics on Twitter, highlights popular content being shared on the social network. Photography aficionados in the audience can gussy up snaps with more photo editing features dubbed "Creative Kit", including a multitude of filters -- some of which (for a limited time) pertain to Halloween. And finally, those of you who use Google Apps within an organization can now partake in all the Google+ fun -- provided your IT admin isn't a social networking-hating luddite. Links explaining all that and more await you below, but before you go, why not hop past the break for some vampiric renditions of Larry and Sergey, and a few other celebs. [Thanks, Rich]
