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by ben_w 408 days ago
Not just that, but he's also got this weird idea that the feed algorithm understands people.

Mine right now is:

1. Friend

2. Ad: Mothers day promotion — mine died years ago

3. People you may know

4. Someone commenting on a post shared by a friend, but FB didn't expand the post so I could actually read the comment, this was just an announcement that such a comment exists

5. Friend

6. Ad: jewellery

7. One of my own posts

8. "Are you interested in this post?"

9. One of my own posts

10. People you may know

11. The same people in #2 with a different picture for the same deal

And this is relatively competent! Usually it's just an endless stream of recommendations for things I have no interest in — meme groups, or support a team I've never heard of in a sport I don't follow in a state I've not visited in a country I was last in before the pandemic, or services I can only buy if I was both a citizen of a different country and living in an additional different country, or both (but as separate ads) dick pills and boob surgery.

I may not be interested in the mother's day promo or the jewellery, but I could at least theoretically buy them if I was.

But then I refresh it, and the friend's posts are reminders to vote… in the UK local elections… which were last week… and I live in Berlin.

On the plus side, this makes it very easy for me at least to not find it at all addictive. If only everyone was so lucky…

2 comments

You're right. However, you must be gaslit and your true observations called into question, to protect the aura of the advertising industry and belief in the algoritms.

All of these algorithms are insanely effective. Thousands of smart people smarter than you made them, how could they not work? If they don't work on you, you're an outlier, they work on everyone else. They work on you, but you just don't realize it. All of these algorithms are insanely effective. Thousands of smart people smarter than you made them, how could they not work? If they don't work on you, you're an outlier, they work on everyone else. They work on you, but you just don't realize it. All of these algorithms are insanely effective. Thousands of smart people smarter than you made them, how could they not work? If they don't work on you, you're an outlier, they work on everyone else. They work on you, but you just don't realize it.

That's a really fun exercise. Mine shows: 1. A popular media personality I like and actually follow. The algorithm is sometimes OK with guessing the topmost post. 2. People you may know. 3. Some make-up advertisement by a Facebook user in one of the groups I'm in (totally irrelevant) 4. Some vaguely relevant news item about my city 5. A cute puppy 6. A vaguely relevant news item again 7. Irrelevant reels

Basically, my life hasn't been enriched by seeing the feed in any way. The one in the top spot was fine but I actively follow that person anyway and check their profile from time to time, so I wouldn't have missed it.