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Facebook limits News Feed links to scammy ad-filled sites
Facebook regularly tweaks your news feed to make sure you only see "quality" posts and ads. It's banned fake news sites from using the Facebook ad network, added an easy way to report false news posts, and has even hired third-party fact-checkers. Today, however, the company announced that it would focus its efforts on websites that contain "little substantive content and that is covered in disruptive, shocking or malicious ads." The news feed update is meant to help reduce the "incentives of financially-motivated spammers."
Facebook topics could be the antidote to news echo chambers
Facebook, like Twitter, can often serve as a personal echo chamber. Users add people they have things in common with, while following and Liking pages that they perceive to be trustworthy. As the debate around fake news continues, the social media giant is testing a new way of surfacing information that a user may otherwise not see. It's called "Topics to Follow" and it works by delivering content from a number of publishers based around a specific theme, rather than a specific outlet.
Facebook is tweaking the News Feed to make room for fact checkers
In its own way, Facebook is taking responsibility for the spread of misinformation and changing how its products deliver news. The next phase of that is a test that "might" populate the News Feed with articles related to the one all your friends are sharing. As the GIF below illustrates, there's a box below shared news story and it has a handful of links to articles about the same subject, but from different publishers and even fact checkers. The idea here is to give people more information on a topic before they mash the "share" button.
Facebook videos in your News Feed soon autoplay with sound
The age of scrolling through your Facebook News Feed past mercifully silent autoplaying videos is over. The social media giant is showering its users with unasked-for love by automatically triggering sound when hovering over a movie, and will soon begin rolling out the change it started testing last August.
Facebook tweaks the feed to bury fake news and clickbait
Just how much fake news trending all over Facebook actually influenced the election is still up for debate, but the question pushed the social media company into crackdown mode. In the last few months, it cut off ad funding for dubious posts and added a button to let users flag questionable content for review by third-party fact-checkers. To more actively combat shady stories, the social media giant is tweaking its News Feed algorithm to promote more legitimate and viral content.
Facebook will set off fireworks on your feed for NYE
This December 31st and January 1st, you can set off animated fireworks on your Facebook News Feed to welcome 2017. Simply click or tap a trigger phrase, such "Happy New Year" (of course), on your friends' or even your own status update. You'll know you're not tapping on a random status in vain, because those phrases will appear in blue text. We looked for triggers ourselves and can confirm that it works both on desktop and on Facebook's mobile apps. So, if you're spending New Year's eve and day indoors and alone, you can go on the social network and alleviate that loneliness by having your own private fireworks show.
Facebook could fight fake news with curated articles
The proliferation of fake news on its network has haunted Facebook since the presidential election. Initially downplaying its impact, CEO Mark Zuckerberg has come around to start speaking on the social platform's action plan, including cutting off ad money. But now they have a new plan to ensure their users get quality content with actual facts: Handpick publications themselves.
Mark Zuckerberg: over 99 percent of Facebook content is authentic
Facebook creator Mark Zuckerberg is clearly riled by allegations that his social network skewed the election by allowing fake news to propagate, and he isn't having any of it. The CEO has posted a defense of Facebook in which he argues that the low volume of bogus news made it "extremely unlikely" that it gave Trump his election win. According to Zuck, "more than 99%" of the Facebook content you see is authentic, and what fake news exists is neither limited to one side of the political spectrum nor always political. This isn't to say that Facebook is unconcerned with hoaxes, the exec says, but it has to tread "very carefully" before it purges anything.
Zuckerberg says Facebook didn't influence the election
If you controlled a media publishing platform that connected to millions of people, it'd make you a pretty powerful individual. Not so, according to Mark Zuckerberg, who has come out against the notion that Facebook helped win it for Trump. TechCrunch reports that the CEO was challenged about his social network's laissez-faire policy towards stopping the flood of fake, bubble-reinforcing propaganda. He thinks that the notion that the torrent of fabricated stories "influenced the election in any way is a pretty crazy idea."
Facebook vows to fight fake news but won't say how
Facebook has a news problem. The algorithm powering its Newsfeed can't always distinguish an accurate story from a complete fabrication, which means misleading and false stories regularly circulate throughout the site. Following Donald Trump's win in the US presidential election this week, commentators are arguing that fake stories shared on Facebook's Newsfeed propelled his campaign, and executives at the site need to take responsibility for distributing accurate, vetted news.
Facebook's News Feed will adapt to your connection speed
Facebook is really trying to show News Feed stories you might want to see, even if you're on a slow internet connection. Last year, it tweaked its algorithms to serve up stories by caching them on your device if internet speeds slow down. While this guarantees you have some kind of content, it means you might get old or irrelevant articles. So, Facebook devised a new ranking system that weighs "both new stories from the server and unseen stories from the persistent cache." The result should be posts you're more interested in reading, even if you're stuck on a train or in a refugee camp.
Oculus brings VR gameplay streams to your Facebook news feed
Facebook has been experimenting with livestreaming gaming for a bit, and now Oculus is coming into the fold. You'll be able to broadcast your Gear VR gameplay to the world's largest social network. From the stage presentation, perhaps unsurprisingly it resembles how the current streams work. Basically, it looks like a status update, and you can tag friends, comment and talk smack. Or, ill-timed words of encouragement from your family members as you blast away enemies. Because that's how Facebook works.
LinkedIn debuts 'influencer' videos for interview tips and more
Video has become a big part of the business strategy for social networks, including Facebook and Twitter. Now, LinkedIn is following a similar path by letting certain people share original videos on its platform. The new tool will only be available to over 500 "influencers" on LinkedIn, someone like the CEO or co-founder of a company. By letting you see these 30-second videos on your feed, LinkedIn says it hopes users can engage on a conversation about topics they're interested in, such as getting advice on how to get hired for a job.
Facebook updates News Feed to show your friends' posts first
Over the next few weeks, Facebook is tweaking its News Feed ranking to ensure you see your friends' and family members' status updates before anything else. The social network gave its feed algorithm an overhaul back in 2015 to prioritize people in your friends' lists, but it sounds like that upgrade didn't quite do the trick. This update is supposed to make sure all the posts by people you know show up and that they're near the top above updates made by FB Pages. But how does Facebook pick out the person you want to interact with the most? The company has also explained how its upgraded feed works.
Facebook tests News Feed-only posts that avoid your Timeline
Being able to hide a Facebook update after it posts isn't entirely new, but the social network is testing a way to let users keep things from ever hitting their Timeline. A "Hide From Your Timeline" checkbox will allow you to only publish something in the News Feed, without the need to remove it afterwards. CNET reports that any post you keep off your Timeline will still show up in search results and they'll be listed alongside your other activity on the "Your Posts" page that only you can view. The feature appears to available for a select few on the web, and Facebook isn't saying when or if it'll be a permanent addition.
Snapchat's content feed could go algorithmic
Snapchat's main content feed could soon get an algorithmic shakeup, Digiday reports. According to sources, Snapchat has been working on updates to its platform that would affect professional or brand accounts and re-arrange the chronological flow of content you see from the accounts you follow.
Facebook ranks articles based on how long you read them
The Instant Articles and other content in your Facebook News Feed aren't picked by magic. The company scrutinizes what kind of stories you want to read based on your clicks, shares or comments, then serves up more of the same. The social network already analyzes how long you spend reading stories while you're still in the app. Now, it will also measure how long you spend on an article after you click away from the News Feed, without counting the load times.
Facebook tweaks your News Feed to show more relevant stories
Facebook typically floats stories to the top of your News Feed based on how likely people are to interact with them, but as you can probably attest, that's not how it works in real life. Just because you're interested in a post doesn't mean you want to like it or leave a comment, does it? Thankfully, Facebook knows the score. The social network is updating News Feed to prioritize stories based on both interactions and survey-based research on relevancy. The move could show you more intriguing stories that would otherwise slip underneath the radar.
Facebook tests multiple News Feeds based on your interests
If you've been yearning for a way to cut through the clutter that is your Facebook News Feed, you may soon be in luck. The social network is testing multiple News Feeds inside its mobile app, as the feature is live for select users. In addition to the main feed, tabs for specific topics like Style, Travel and Headlines line the top of the interface. When you select one, the feed is distilled down to relevant posts from your friends and Pages you follow. Facebook says the feature is in the testing phase, so it could be a bit before it's open to all users.
Listen to NPR clips right in your Facebook news feed
NPR will offer bits of its audio stories directly in your Facebook news feed throughout December and January, NPR Tech Reporter Aarti Shahani announced via Twitter today. (If that lede doesn't encapsulate the idea of "old" media meeting new, we're not sure what does.) The social-media experiment offers clips of audio and a link to "Listen on NPR," which takes users to the full story, outside of Facebook. The experiment will be available via the Facebook iOS app and the site's desktop version.
