The topics raised by the paper were very interesting after just reading through the two articles on Facebook's studies. A lot of what the researchers wrote involved how much power the audience now has in agenda-setting, and how journalists need to understand they are no longer passive. This thought is reinforced by the two articles on Facebook where we saw audience posts manipulated to successfully influence other users.
To me, this just shows how important it continues to be that journalists not get swept up in audience-driven editorial judgement because enough of that is happening in the social media world already. The authors cite Barger and Barney saying “the market requires giving the public what it wants; democracy requires giving the public what it needs” (2004) and I think it's crucial for journalists to remember that they are not exclusively market-driven.
Of course, privacy issues are also a big concern in the first two articles, as big data is collected and then used to manipulate the public unknowingly. It certainly reinforces how important it is to have trained professional researchers and journalists who know the ethics of what they do.
To me, this just shows how important it continues to be that journalists not get swept up in audience-driven editorial judgement because enough of that is happening in the social media world already. The authors cite Barger and Barney saying “the market requires giving the public what it wants; democracy requires giving the public what it needs” (2004) and I think it's crucial for journalists to remember that they are not exclusively market-driven.
Of course, privacy issues are also a big concern in the first two articles, as big data is collected and then used to manipulate the public unknowingly. It certainly reinforces how important it is to have trained professional researchers and journalists who know the ethics of what they do.
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