Good old Facebook, for most people it is a key component to their everyday life. If you get a new job, having some good/sad news to tell the world about or if you just update your profile picture it's a big part of all of our lives. It keeps evolving which is why it has been around for as long as it has but it's latest reported feature could be a massive mistake.
I am pretty active online, much more than I would prefer, I have found as you start to work with big names, you indirectly make a name for yourself. I have found losing my personal privacy online a harsh lesson and it is nigh on impossible to reclaim. Running Avalanche means the majority of my Facebook posts are to do with this, letting people know what I am up to. I usually post positive things like being nominated for awards, new projects published, new clients etc on my own personal profile. I was once told I only go on Facebook to tell the world how great I am! Why wouldn't I? If I posted every time I messed something up I would clog up the entire newsfeed.
Happily I receive a positive reaction from the majority of people online and even more so in a social setting which I typically downplay regardless of the setting but I also get people forming an opinion on Avalanche and therefore an immediate, sometimes negative opinion on Aidan as an extent.
All of this leads me to the "genius" idea of Facebook to introduce a Dislike button or something along the same lines. What an absolutely terrible f**king idea. A dislike button will only enhance an online culture that makes it acceptable for trolls/faceless people to criticise people they have never met. It will give people the option of disliking something that is so bland it is not news. Why give someone the option of doing so? It is not a healthy online environment for anyone, particularly younger users
People will begin to question every move they make because of one dislike on a post. It will create complexes for young people that are totally avoidable, for example a young girl could get 50 likes on her latest selfie and 1 dislike, which do you think she will fixate on? This is unhealthy and is veering towards ask.fm/Yik Yak territory which are both fine examples of social media at it's absolute worst. Those with thick skin can just shake it off but it will affect a lot of vulnerable people negatively.
The basic premise behind the Dislike function is that not all news is happy, for example if Billy posts that his dog died, does my like signify I am happy about it? No, it is basically me empathising with Billy about his situation which is a much more desirable option in my opinion. Breeding negativity on the biggest open platform in the world is a ridiculous move and one that should be avoided at all costs in my opinion.
People have more then enough ways to point out flaws online and giving trolls ammunition to do so is not the answer and Facebook's motto of moving fast and breaking things may need to be revisited before the most vulnerable of Facebook users end up paying a high price for the irrational brutality of the internet.
Aidan out.