Re:The brief history of Facebook apologizing
by jackgavigan on Wednesday July 02, 2014 @12:40PM
(#7977977)
Apologies begin to sound pretty insincere when the company (or person) making the apology keep on doing the same damned thing that they're apologising for.
This particular apology is even worse because they're not apologising for doing the research; they're apologising "for the way the paper described our research and any anxiety it caused."
They're not saying "We will never do this again."
They're not saying "We will never do this again without first obtaining ethical approval from an appropriate review board."
They're not saying "We will never change your Facebook newsfeed to affect your emotional state in order to make you more susceptible to adverts for particular products."
They're not saying "We will never accept payment from an advertiser to change your Facebook feed in order to affect your emotional state."
This particular apology is even worse because they're not apologising for doing the research; they're apologising "for the way the paper described our research and any anxiety it caused."
They're not saying "We will never do this again."
They're not saying "We will never do this again without first obtaining ethical approval from an appropriate review board."
They're not saying "We will never change your Facebook newsfeed to affect your emotional state in order to make you more susceptible to adverts for particular products."
They're not saying "We will never accept payment from an advertiser to change your Facebook feed in order to affect your emotional state."
So, what conclusions should we draw here?