Meta to double the dose of force-fed filler on Instagram, Facebook in 2023 [Updated]
Enlarge (credit: SOPA Images / Contributor | LightRocket)
(Update at 5:17pm ET: A Meta spokesperson sent this statement in response to Instagram user complaints: Based on our findings and community feedback, we're pausing the full-screen test on Instagram so we can explore other options, and we're temporarily decreasing the number of recommendations you see in your feed so we can improve the quality of your experience. We recognize that changes to the app can be an adjustment, and while we believe that Instagram needs to evolve as the world changes, we want to take the time to make sure we get this right."
Regarding recent improvements to the algorithm designed to combat misinformation spread, the spokesperson noted that Zuckerberg says on the call, "in general, we've made a lot of progress" on content moderation "over the last few years, and I'm quite proud of that." He says most content moderation is conducted through AI, and the company's Community Standards Enforcement Report will continue monitoring the AI's performance by tracking "what percent of the harmful content" that systems are "identifying and taking an action on before someone has to report it to us.")
Hundreds of thousands of people recently signed a Change.org petition asking Instagram to stop eating up space in their feeds by recommending so many Reels from accounts they do not follow. Shortly after, Instagram-owner Meta confirmed that these users aren't just imagining that there's a sudden avalanche of Reels ruining their online social lives. The short videos currently make up about 15 percent of Instagram and Facebook user feeds-and soon, even more often, they'll be shoving to the side all the updates from friends that users choose to follow.