… or be prepared to wait another five to ten years. It could take that long to fix the company!
That’s my verdict after reading last weeks longread on Facebook in the NYT.
Things that stuck in my head: Facebook management wasn’t really taking all the incidents seriously in the last 2 years. A practice of only admitting what’s necessary, and even hiring a PR firm that supposedly engaged in the same practice Facebook was criticized for: Spreading fake news on the basis of conspiracy theories to discredit its critics. Facebook’s COO Sandberg published a post on Facebook on that denying the allegations.
So, Facebook has not changed much over the last two years, but seems to be a Titanic on which management refuses to see the iceberg.
There has never been a discussion as to whether or not Mark Zuckerberg is right for the job – that’s about to change now (maybe a few more incidents are needed until the pressure is high enough, similar to Uber).
If Facebook were not the dominant player in the market companies and users could easily move away. Facebook would have a major problem right now. But users continue to use the services, companies buy advertising – and revenue is stable despite all the scandals.
If you do not have 30 minutes to read the article, I recommend the Techmeme Ride Home Podcast from November 15, which discusses the article and adds a few more interpretations.
Anyway, the next months will be exciting: Will Facebook want to change something fundamental about its products? Will Zuck clear the way for someone else, what incidents are still in the dark?