I know I may be in the minority, not in hating Facebook and Mark Zuckerberg but in admitting it openly and often. Facebook ranks right there with Exxon just after the Valdez oil spill for negative association with a brand. It used to be okay to say you hate Zucks, even when The Social Network came out. But now he’s too powerful. If there is a big brother (George Orwell’s 1984 seems quant now but let’s get serious the dude was dead on) it’s the boy wonder in the flip flops.
Don’t get me wrong, we at GMP understand the importance of social media with FB being perhaps the most important. The number one and two sources of GMP traffic are readers who find us directly or come to us through a Google search. But Facebook is number three and critical to our web of readers and evangelists.
Some of my animosity has to do with privacy, control and lack of a truly open platform. But mostly it’s just a personality thing. I do believe that Zucks stole the idea from a couple of oarsmen (I’m a rower and we stick together). I also don’t think he really has a larger agenda about good in the world, like the guys at Twitter, or even an obsession with design, like Steve Jobs. Facebook is first and foremost about what Mark Zuckerberg wants.
None of which is to say he isn’t brilliant, that his company won’t be worth an astonishing $100 billion (roughly equal to the cash balance at Apple just by the way), nor that Facebook hasn’t reshaped the entire face of media world-wide.
Okay, maybe I am just a tiny bid jealous.
What do you think? Facebook good? Or Facebook evil?
Facebook Inc. could file papers for its initial public offering as early as this coming week, people familiar with the matter said, as anticipation mounts for what is likely to be one of the biggest debuts for a U.S. company.
The deal, seen as defining moment for the latest Web investing boom, could raise as much as $10 billion and value the social network between $75 billion and $100 billion, said people familiar with the matter. A valuation of $75 billion would be below earlier expectations.
Don’t like ads? Become a supporter and enjoy The Good Men Project ad freeThe website, which in less than eight years has attracted more than 800 million members, has changed the way people across the globe communicate, from organizing political protests to sharing baby pictures.
The Internet giant is close to picking Morgan Stanley to lead the deal, these people said. Wall Street banks, many of them struggling amid a crimp in trading profits, have been jostling for a leading role in the deal, which could yield them tens of millions of dollars in banker fees, potential new business and bragging rights.
—“Facebook Readies IPO Filing” WSJ
Hello Fellas,
You all may want to check out another side of this story:
http://www.thedailybell.com/3565/Facebook-IPO-Is-US-Intel-Operation
Cheers.
I avoided getting on Facebook for quite some time but finally gave in. And I will admit that for awhile it was fun getting in touch with old friends. But then after awhile I started to doubt the value of seeing pictures of peoples kids and kittens everyday And I started to get this creepy feeling about all the information that was being shared and what could possibly be done with it. In the end I just decided what an amazing time suck the whole thing is.and I let my page expire. Some old friends complain that it is too… Read more »
I never understood why people give ALL info about them to Facebook. You could simply install a camera on your forehead, with an internet connection to your government. It’s basically the same.
This is a awesome blog.. I truly respect this.. Thanks SO much!!!
Farcebook is a venue I have been watching for some time. It is interesting, but it has so many drawbacks and so many dangers. I know from having dealt with issues there that the prime focus is income and the cost to individuals is irrelevant, even when claimed otherwise. It will be interesting to see what happens with the New EU Data Protection Laws coming up – I wonder how old Zucker will try to get out from under this time. Many do not realise that Farcebook is different in different countries – and old Zucker really does not like… Read more »
Just wanted to say Orwell got one huge thing wrong in 1984, which is that he said the future dystopia of Big Brother would be a socialist authoritarian regime whereas we know now it’s capitalism.
RIGHT ON…the government isn’t big brother, but rather corporate America (and Europe) has become big bro. Smart TV’s with webcams for video conferencing are great, but frighteningly reminiscent of Orwell’s Vision. Although the distinction between corporate american and the US gov is a very fine line: oil execs run the EPA and Dept of Interior, Goldman Sach, BofA, and Wells Fargo execs run the treasury and federal reserve, and Boeing and others along with “think tanks” control our military objectives. I share Ruth’s fear of fbook and the cloud in general. I have an fbook account, g+, and several others,… Read more »
I tend too have the same question! I’m not envious of Zuckerman or his empire. But there is something within the man that guides him that gives me a strange and uncomfortable feeling. I don’t use Facebook, atlhough most people in my profession do. I don’t really know if it’s good for “marketing” or not. But there is an unnamed somethng that makes me want to stay as far away as possible. It’s an odd, inexplicable thing, but it’s my intuition which I always respect.