Lawsuit challenges Facebook’s control over user feeds

A recent lawsuit has raised questions about whether social media users have the ability to curate their own Facebook feeds.

Filed by the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University on behalf of University of Massachusetts Amherst professor Ethan Zuckerman, the lawsuit targets Meta, Facebook’s parent company, over the release of a tool called “Unfollow Everything 2.0”.

This browser extension, developed by Zuckerman, aims to empower Facebook users by allowing them to automatically unfollow friends, groups, and pages, effectively turning off their newsfeeds. The lawsuit seeks to pre-emptively protect Zuckerman from potential legal action by Meta under US law, which provides immunity to software developers creating tools to filter objectionable content.

Zuckerman’s hesitation to release the tool stems from concerns about potential retaliation from Meta, as seen in a similar case where UK developer Louis Barclay faced legal action and a lifetime Facebook ban after releasing a similar tool.

In an interview, Zuckerman emphasized the importance of challenging Facebook’s control over user experiences, highlighting the lack of control users currently have over their social media networks compared to other online platforms like email.

While Facebook does offer manual unfollowing options, the process can be cumbersome, particularly for users with extensive networks. Zuckerman also intends to conduct a study on how disabling the Facebook feed impacts user engagement, with participation in the study requiring explicit consent from users.

The lawsuit signals a broader effort to address the power dynamics between social media companies and their users, advocating for greater transparency and user control over online experiences.