The news that Facebook has resumed allowing video of beheadings and decapitations to be viewed on the popular social media site has been both widely reported by the media, and generally condemned by all those who have heard about it. While there is no doubt that monitoring and ensuring that the content of a monumentally huge site like Facebook is acceptable to all poses a logistical difficulty for even a corporation the size of Facebook Inc., this will nevertheless be viewed by many people as a totally unacceptable decision that represents yet another massive black mark against the popular social media site.
This is hardly the first time that Facebook has courted controversy. It would be very difficult to conceive of an Internet site, or possibly any product in the world, that has such a chequered reputation. On the one hand, Facebook has been constantly subjected to criticism for all manner of different faux pas, but on the other the site retains its simply awesome popularity, particularly among young people. But by allowing beheadings to potentially be viewed by children online, has the social media site overstepped the mark, and created a line in the sand for itself that many people won’t tolerate its crossing?
Probably the biggest criticism of Facebook has been related to privacy. There have been all sorts of problems with this issue, with the site being particularly strongly accused of data mining. This has been brought into sharper focus by the recent revelations that the Edward Snowden case has uncovered, which suggested strongly – not that it shouldn’t be the case already – that one ought to do everything possible to protect one’s online privacy.
Facebook has long been seen as a site which exemplifies the absolute antithesis of this, with personal information not only unsatisfactorily protected by the site, but also strong accusations have consistently been made that Facebook’s primary function is one of surveillance, and that the owners of the site ultimately use users’ data in an inappropriate fashion. Facebook naturally defend themselves against such accusations, but the feeling persists that those Internet users who wish to retain their privacy shouldn’t sign up for Facebook.
Other criticisms have included the vulnerability of Facebook members, particularly emotionally vulnerable adolescents, to bullying, and the difficulty of deleting an account from the site (this was the subject of a memorable South Park episode). That is not to say that no good has come from the site; it can be a useful tool to keep in touch with friends and family, and has been used effectively by political activists all over the world.
But one has to wonder given the vast usage of this site by young people, who are under the age of adult consent, whether the site can continue to court controversy with such appalling oversights. How many mistakes which go completely against public opinion can one website be permitted to make? At some point, one would have to wonder whether Facebook’s ills outweigh its positives.
Christopher Morris is a regular contributor to Yahoo on television, cinema, video games, technology and politics.
Allowing beheading clips - has Facebook gone too far this time?
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