jews in the digital age

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Facebook Angst

et's be honest here. You spend a
lot of time scrolling through your
Facebook newsfeed. Whether
you're on a desktop computer, your iPad
or a mobile phone, it feels like a mindless
activity to swipe through your friends'
posts. Well, you might not realize it, but
your mood will be changed by what you
see on the screen.
According to a research paper pub-
lished in the Proceedings of the National
Academy of Science earlier this year,
Facebook altered the newsfeeds for some
users as part of a psychology experi-
ment devised by the company's on-staff
data scientist. Sheryl Sandberg, the
chief operating officer of Facebook, later
apologized for altering the newsfeeds of
some 700,000 different English-language
Facebook users during a short period
during 2012. Whether Facebook acted
ethically or not, the results are quite
revealing.
The experiment sought to learn about
the way positive and negative effect trav-
els through social networks. The study
concluded that "in-person interaction
and nonverbal cues are not strictly neces-
sary for emotional contagion?'
To test the hypothesis, the researchers
identified and began removing emotion-
ally negative posts for one group and
positive posts for another. According to
the paper, "When a person loaded their
Facebook newsfeed, posts that contained
emotional content of the relevant emo-
tional valence, each emotional post had
between a 10 percent and 90 percent
chance (based on their user ID) of being
omitted from their newsfeed for that spe-
cific viewing:'
It should be mentioned that nothing
Facebook did to manipulate users' feeds
was in violation of the Terms of Use each
account holder agrees to when registering
for the social network.
The study concluded that people were
more likely to post negative updates about
their lives after the volume of positive
information appearing in their Facebook
feeds had been purposefully reduced by
the researchers. The opposite reaction
occurred when the number of negative
posts appeared in people's news feeds.

The Gaza War Effect
Many Facebook users didn't need the
results of this psychological study to tell
them that social media affects mood.
This summer, many individuals com-
plained that Facebook was making them
sad or even depressed. For weeks, many
Facebook users were inundated with posts
in their newsfeeds sharing links to articles

about the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.
Strong opinions on both sides of the con-
flict were posted vociferously on Facebook
and on other social networks. Some users
stated they just needed a Facebook break
from the "noise" of political posturing.
Many heated debates ensued as the
situation in Israel and in Gaza intensified.
For some Facebook users, the social net-
work offered the bully pulpit they didn't
have before.
While the term "unfriending" was
virtually unheard of before Facebook
launched a decade ago, it has become a
popular term as users are resorting to
disconnecting online relationships over
strong differences of opinion. Specifically,
the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has sev-
ered relationships — both online and in
real life.
"Facebook angst" has become a real
ailment as many users have found them-
selves angry during what has generally
been thought of as a relaxed period dur-
ing the summer months. It's nothing
new for Metro Detroiters to enjoy some
friendly banter and back-and-forth
debate over long-standing rivalries like
U-M vs. MSU college athletics, but politi-
cal fighting on Facebook has taken its toll
on many people's emotions.

Once again, the posts shared on Facebook
by our friends altered our emotions.
Weddings, engagements, new babies
being born, family vacations, sporting
events, concerts and summer camp
experiences notwithstanding, the zeit-
geist of summer as shared on Facebook
was not a happy one.

Then Comes The Flood
Just when the conflict in the Middle East
seemed to die down, a 100-year flood
took Metro Detroit by storm. Members
of the Jewish community in Huntington
Woods, Oak Park, Berkley
and the surrounding areas
Ice Bucket Challenge
began posting photos of their
And then our collective mood
111
ruined basements. Images of
seemed to trend upward to a
happier,
more fun disposition.
personal belongings, cher-
C
ished family photographs
The summer craze occurred
and furniture lined up on the
in the middle of August as the
street curb began occupying
entire world seemed to jump on
people's Facebook feed. There
the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge.
was no relief during the hia-
A charitable giving meme, the
f-NIP
tus from Middle East bomb-
Ice Bucket Challenge proved a
ing. More users complained
Rabbi Jason fun way for everyone — young
of the utter sadness filling up
and old — to raise both money
Miller
their Facebook feed, but like-
and awareness for ALS, also
wise couldn't take their eyes
known as Lou Gehrig's Disease.
off the screen.
We laughed out loud as we watched
The only news event large enough to
our friends dump ice-cold water over
silence the deluge of flood posts in our
their heads in creative ways (while also
Facebook newsfeed was the death of a
announcing their donation) and then
comedy icon. As news trickled in on
challenging other friends to do the
same. This fun trend on social media
Facebook and Twitter about the sud-
den, tragic death of actor and comedian
was just what we needed during those
Robin Williams, people began posting
days when our Facebook feed was full of
on Facebook about their favorite Robin
negative news and giving us a case of the
Williams' movies, quotes and scenes.
"blues:'
Many used the celebrity's suicide to share
Unfortunately, as the popularity of the
their own experience with depression.
viral ALS Ice Bucket Challenge began to

wane, our Facebook newsfeeds began to
fill up with news of the latest death toll
in Israel as more rockets rained down
from Gaza. Who needs the 24-hour cable
news networks anymore? We have our
Facebook feed to tell us what is happen-
ing in the world — for good and for bad.
With each passing year in the first
quarter of the 21st century, we find that
technology takes over more of our lives.
Social media changes our emotions in
ways we could never have imagined.
Whether it's a political election, a roller
coaster economy, war, weather or sports
rivalries, our Facebook newfeeds will
keep us involved in the hourly banter.
We might not have liked the sneaky
way Facebook altered its algorithm to
help some researchers learn about how
the social network affects our psychol-
ogy, but there's no question that the
results of the study are telling. We are all
drawn in to our Facebook feed and the
content there drives how we feel. The
best solution to not become overtaken
by the ups or downs of Facebook is to
take a break. Unplug and give your emo-
tions a fighting chance.

❑

Rabbi Jason Miller is the Detroit Jewish News'

technology expert. He's president of Access

Computer Technology in West Bloomfield and

blogs at http://blog.rabbijason.com . Follow

him on Twitter at ®RabbiJason.

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August 28 • 2014

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