[wormy745]

Do you think Instagram/Facebook is a wolf in sheep’s clothing, or a sheep with fangs?

By that I mean- is the product addiction, with a shroud of media, or is it media which just happens to be addictive.

[thewebguyd]

They are the wolf. The product is the user's attention, they are ad delivery networks disguised as "social media."

The entire revenue model is based on on engagement and clicks, the product is incentivized to maximize time spent on the service at any cost. Addiction is a core engineering requirement.

[micromacrofoot]

they know what they're doing, they've tried to bury the evidence but their own internal studies have shown addiction and harmful psychological effects in children

facebook in the past has done tests of emotional manipulation on their users without informing them

they're rotten from the head down

[fsflover]

> is the product addiction, with a shroud of media, or is it media which just happens to be addictive.

It's the former, by design:

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=24579498

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=26846784

[altmanaltman]

they are the Shepard, we are the sheep, ads/media are the wolves that also have a deal with the shepard.