Sir, – I am confused to read media reports that Facebook has dropped 18 per cent in value as I have never seen any value in it at all. – Yours, etc,
DENNIS FITZGERALD,
Melbourne,
Australia.
Sir – While away on holidays, I understand it was revealed that Facebook has less than altruistic motives in moderating content on its site.
Surely this is sufficient evidence to expose the tech phenomenon for what it is, simply a platform that inverts the consumer into a commodity that tech platforms then sell on to marketeers to turn the commodity back into a consumer. We now have a primary source of information that is driven by prurience, propaganda and narcissism. This is a very pervasive species of media that probably requires something equivalent to a dedicated G20 summit to put the genie back in the bottle. Ultimately there is no such thing as a free lunch. We are paying for this dubious service with our free minds. It is time to call a halt before no one has a mind of their own. – Yours, etc,
SUZANNE DOYLE,
Kildare.