#134

Shit

#135

When I go to Facebook settings - ads

Facebook reckons my interests are: automobiles, football, business, sport, shopping and fashion

Is it pretending not to know me at all to hide it knows everything?

2 Likes
#136

Think one of the many depressing things about this is that it gives the sense that if you zoom out far enough free will does not exist we are just thrown about by statistical forces

#137

And if you zoom in far enough you realise free will doesn’t exist because our brains are organic matter governed by the rules of physics.

12 Likes
#138

It’s easier to pretend at that level though, or rather the illusion of it being easier to pretend

2 Likes
#139

So

Facebook is now $60 billion down on where it was before the markets opened yesterday

and CA has just suspended it’s CEO Nix

shit’s going down

3 Likes
#140

time for myspace Tom to make his move

31 Likes
#141

I’ve got my fingers crossed for FentyBook

3 Likes
#142

Second part of the C4 news vid went up today:

1 Like
#143

Interesting that Nix said he met with Trump many times.

#144

*Ello

1 Like
#145

Wait, there’s many levels of smoke & mirrors here

1 Like
#146

Jeez, this thread re; CA & Repeal the 8th in Ireland

1 Like
#148

I’ve been thinking about this. I think in the end business interest, and financial backing, will always side with the political right so it’s hard to have the same powerful machine running behind it.

#149

hmm, authoritarian left Governments love social control - China’s growing surveillance state uses every method possible I’m sure

then again, in our hyper-capitalist bullshit world we’re sold the idea that the social control that trickles down from wealth is actual freedom and the opposite of what they have in China

we’re all fucked

#150

remember when Obama first won their was a big deal made about their clever use of data in the campaign, targeting voters and getting their vote out while the republicans lagged behind, probably a lot less corrupt than this stuff but still a kind of similar thing. At the time it seemed to be just regarded as a really smart move that the republicans were lagging behind on, don’t remember seeing much criticism of it. I guess it was less bad because it was still old school campaigning methods just targeted better, where as this involves misinformation and illegal use of data. Still interesting where exactly is the line, if the data is obtained legally would that be ok, or is it the microtargetting itself which is wrong

2 Likes
#152

yeah but it’s buying the media channels (facebook ads) that costs the money too, not just the software/hardware required to mine the data

unless someone develops another social platform and allows full organic reach/doesn’t choke organic reach in favour of selling access that will still be a huge barrier

#155

I pretty much avoid linking facebook with other sites for exactly this reason, I kind of always wanted to believe I was just being overly paranoid though :pensive:

#156

not if you want to reach 10s of millions of people with targeted & customised ads

I dunno, how many socialist billionaires are there willing to back let’s say a massive drive to end fossil fuel use …probably not many - not without a profit motive of their own

the internet gave grass roots movements the opportunity to organise & communicate but just as in every other phase & sphere of life the popular channels became premium and the people & organisations with power & money swoop in to feed on the rest of us and our local groups just can’t compete with industry power & influence

Don’t get me wrong, I’m no luddite, I would love a techno utopia but these seeds growing in the soil of capitalism/authoritarianism (same thing) mean that without global standards on the use of data and against the monpolisation of virtual space we’re all just commodities - a click farm for tech bros. I mean how many of us have been working voluntarily for Zuckerberg and the rest for years now? It’s kind of insane.

The internet needs some kind of common land law and or municipalisation … or else just tax the fuck out of all the billionaires, AI, robots etc, let the tech do all the work and give everyone a universal living wage

lol

1 Like
#158

there is (potentially) another side

https://www.quantifiedplanet.org/

1 Like