In social media news this week, Facebook changes its algorithm to downgrade certain posts and creates a feature to censor others, Apple buys out Shazam and an app makes it possible to turn your face into an emoji.
Facebook Halts the Begging
A new algorithm on Facebook means posts that ask you to share them to your friends, ‘like if you agree’ or tag your best friend, will be less likely to show up on a user’s feed. If a page or user continues to post content that involves this kind of ‘engagement bait’, then they will see a bigger decrease in reach. This way of posting increases the chances of it showing up on users’ feeds as Facebook pushes posts with more interactions, which is unfair on those with genuine, quality content.
However, authentic posts that ask users to share because a person is missing or individuals asking for help via the social media site will not be affected. This is another step for Facebook as it tries to return to its core values – authenticity.
Hide the Post
Another social media news story comes from Facebook again this week, as a user spotted a feature on the social site that lets you only share a post to your news feed, rather than your profile. The feature comes in the form of a button on your status that lets you decide whether you want it to ‘Show on Profile’ or not. It can also be sent to the ‘Stories’ feature too. This means thing do not have to be hidden from your profile, as they aren’t visible on there. However, it has yet to be confirmed by Facebook as a testing feature.
When Apple Met Shazam
Shazam has ranked as one of the most popular apps for iPhone, so it comes as no surprise that Apple has purchased the music recognition app. It’ll be interesting to see what Apple does with the app, as Shazam has struggled to evolve out of its current use. Shazam tested a visual search feature back in 2015, but it didn’t take off, so this may be an aspect that the two companies will work on together.
Real-Life Emojis
A start-up company called Mirror A.I. have been working on app that turns your selfie into a series of emojis. Mirror Emoji Keyboard uses artificial intelligence and facial recognition to identify features of a user’s face in a photo, to turn them into a set of custom emojis. The app also lets you turn your friends’ faces into different expressions too, but the app is still working on making pets and groups of people’s faces accessible too.
