Why I find Facebook-trending depressing
[dropcap]A[/dropcap]s a measure to counteract what some say is its inevitable decline, Facebook launched a new feature in January 2014 – the trending bar. The feature was designed to show the user popular stories and hashtags, which an added touch of personalisation in that it would select stories for you based on pages you’ve liked, your location and things that your friends have liked or shared. It can be handy, a nice little source of news and it can show you an occasional funny video or two.
On the whole, though, trending is quite a depressing feature to look at – as a representation of the things society cares about, it is a damning call for a divine power to wipe humanity from the face of the Earth and try again. As I write this piece, ISIS has slaughtered 300 Yazidi captives in Iraq, and Baltimore have lifted a curfew following the riots sparked by the killing of Freddie Grey in police custody. Nepal is still dealing with the after-effects of the colossal earthquake that struck weeks ago, killing over 7000 people.
The only real story that I understand people talking about so much is the birth of the new royal baby.
So what do people care about (or at least, speak about online)? As is so often the case, a number of trending topics are the latest comments from Katie Hopkins and the reactions to said comments, or the latest video of whatever dross Jimmy Fallon is calling comedy this week (this week, it’s Jeremy Renner singing – I remember reading that the Internet is something like 90% pornography, but that ratio must have shifted with the amount of pollution Fallon has diffused).
Why does this matter though? It’s all a bit of fun, surely? Well, maybe, but in a world where there are many more important things going on, the trending bar as a summary of what is popular on the internet is quite depressing. Why is it that during the week of the General Election, more people discussed World Naked Gardening Day? Some people need to get a grip.
The worst example, and I remember this because it got me to levels of anger that I can only usually muster when watched Masterchef – Tom Fletcher shared a video of his son seeing a dandelion for the first time, and this was shared so much it ranked up with genuine news stories.
I hate it when the news ends with a lighter, non-story because people are thick (you’re watching the news – expect news), but this is the equivalent of slamming a custard pie into Peter Sissons’ face after he has finished recounting horrific details of a worldwide atrocity.
Maybe I’m reading too much into it, and the trending bar is just a light-hearted bit of fun – however, in a world where so much of importance is going on, I can’t help but feel it is a tragic reflection of an ignorant society obsessed with celebrities and too dim to concentrate on anything of substance.
Humanity, please try harder.
Comments (2)
People like you make me sick. What do you do, sit home and ruminate on the fate of the Yazidi and the threat of global warming? Maybe worry about Google invading your privacy in your spare moments? Go be morose somewhere far away from me, please.
Of course the big issues matter but surely it’s alright to, for once, focus on something light-hearted that brings happiness to people, something as simple as a child’s laughter! It shouldn’t feel depressing but instead enlightening that things like this still put a smile on people’s faces in a more materialistic and commercialised world. The news doesn’t have to be all doom and gloom, why can’t it end on a light(er) note?