Why I like my own facebook posts, don't click links about Kim Kardashian and vote 3rd party
What is a facebook like? A button you click to indicate your approval of a link, some words or a picture? Yes, it is that. A symbol we give to others and they give to us often taken to indicate social status? That too. How about a signal of membership in social spheres aligned around interests? Yes. Whatever a "like"means to you individually and us collectively, one meaning we often disregard is that an action is an intention towards the predicted consequences of that action. This interpretation will be taken by those who think of their actions instrumentally, who act pursuant to their goals and values. A facebook like isn't just a symbol with shared meaning. It has real life consequence. I don't know the specifics of how facebook's algorithms decide how posts get placed on people's newsfeeds, but it's obvious that one of the positive variables is how many likes it has. A post that has 3 likes will get more weight in that algorithm than one with 2. a...