Criticizing Facebook Is How To Maintain Its Positive Impact

Nowadays it is difficult to find a commensurate comparison with Facebook as a social media platform. As a single platform, nothing has been able to match its reach and usability. Some people even think Facebook is the internet itself

The massive influence of Facebook is of course also happening in Indonesia. With a population of hundreds of millions, Indonesia is one of the most "loved" markets.

About two weeks ago, Facebook just released a study that quantified the social and economic impact they had on Indonesia. PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Indonesia and the Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (INDEF) as the authors of the study summarized the socio-economic impacts of Facebook's presence into four categories, namely individuals, businesses, organizational communities, and governments.

In the individual spectrum, the study stated that Facebook has a role as a place to build friendships with people they already know (84%), as well as being a place to meet people they have not known before, whether they are in different cities (80%), abroad (69%). %), or those who have similar hobbies (81%), or who have different hobbies (63%).

The connections that exist between these individuals give birth to a number of communities on Facebook whose role is getting bigger. One of the best examples is the Indonesian Anti-Hoax Society (Mafindo) which is active against disinformation, fake news, and hoaxes in the Indonesian cyberspace. So it's not surprising that this study found that of the 1.220 people listed as a sample, most of them claimed to have gained new knowledge such as digital skills (79%), language skills (73%), vocational skills (67%), literacy (75%), soft skills. such as communication (69%).

From a business perspective, Facebook's impact looks very promising. The study noted that SME businesses found it helpful especially in terms of marketing and market reach. A total of 1.022 businesses admitted engagement with their customers increasing (92%), businesses were able to cut marketing costs (75%), and help businesses get more customers (92%). Finally, from the government sector, Facebook services helped 410 local and central government offices with the following details: assisted in informing policies (75%), implementing transparency and openness practices (84%), and making it easier to receive public input (95%).

The study clearly shows the huge benefits of Facebook as the most influential social media in the world. But because of that magnitude, we can no longer see only one side. In this case, I believe that the meme of great power brings greater responsibility. Without compromising the benefits it brings, Facebook has unfinished homework.

The first example is the potential misuse of data as happened in the Cambridge Analytica scandal. This scandal emerged to the public in early 2018. Data from 87 million Facebook users became victims in this case. Around 1,1 million accounts in Indonesia affected by the scandal.

While no penalties have been imposed on Facebook in Indonesia, a number of countries have taken a tougher stance. England for example dropped a fine of £500 or around Rp. 9 billion against Facebook for failing to protect user data. Meanwhile, the FTC, a regulatory agency in the United States, imposed sanctions in the form of: US$5 billion fine or around IDR 70 trillion and the obligation to build a new better privacy structure for its users. The two countries show that Facebook is guilty and has responsibility for its negligence.

Another bad example is misinformation and hoaxes in Myanmar that are spread through the Facebook platform. As in other Southeast Asian countries, Facebook is the most popular social network there. Its popularity is also what makes it a tool for ultranationalists and the military there to attack the Rohingya Muslims.

The United Nations noted that 700.000 Rohingya fled Myanmar to escape the massacres fueled by hatred there. A case the United Nations has called a "textbook example of ethnic cleansing".

The problem is, unlike the social impact they are proud of, Facebook as a technology giant often forgets itself and seems naive about its influence in a number of conflicts in the real world. In the case of the Rohingya, they admitted that they were slow to respond to the incident.

Facebook's inaction in responding to such a precarious situation was also reflected in the way Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg was criticized after the 2016 US election. At that time, various parties sneered at Facebook because it seemed to allow misinformation to run rampant so that it affected the results of the US election which Donald Trump eventually won.

"After the election, I made a statement that I thought that misinformation on Facebook changed the election results as a crazy idea. To think of it as crazy is an understatement and I regret it," Zuckerberg said two years ago.

Must continue to be criticized

There is no reason to turn away from the socio-economic benefits that Facebook brings. However, seeing their actions that have not changed much, skepticism should be maintained.

Not long ago Zuckerberg expressed the position that political advertising is part of freedom of expression. This is an example of the umpteenth time that the Facebook boss seems to turn a blind eye to the fact that political advertising carries a ticking time bomb that divides the public with misinformation and hoaxes.

We are full of polarization of opinion that is so sharp from the many elections in Indonesia. We also know that political contractors like Cambridge Analytica have a role to play and are ready to take advantage of this "support" by Facebook. This is why we need to be aware and critical of what Facebook provides to the public.

Facebook at least needs to behave like Twitter which has firmly rejected political advertising on its platform. We don't want misinformation, fake news, and hoaxes to pollute the social media homepages used by 120 million accounts in Indonesia, which in turn will cover up their positive impact.