Facebook: The Reinvention

Posted on by Natalie Landsberg

Since being an avid Facebook-er for the past ten years, I’ve come to understand the platform and how it’s always striving to reinvent itself and compete (or collaborate) with other social media sites. In the past ten years, Facebook has completely remodeled its design; introducing a mobile app, sticker packs, the ‘timeline,’ ‘cover photo,’ and most recently, the ‘story’ features. It has become more focused on posting and sharing and way less about the personal information that it used to be, like relationship status’s, profile pictures, etc.

Facebook has always been a way to make and maintain relationships with others, and as it has evolved, it became a way to follow and interact with celebrities, brands, and large corporations. Through these interactions, I’ve had positive experiences with Facebook that continue to draw me back to the application. It has become almost a unique version of myself, as I’m constantly sharing life updates, images, thoughts, and interactions with others. It even helped me find a roommate when coming to Syracuse my Freshman year.

Despite being a very relevant social media player, I have found that Facebook is struggling to further reinvent itself and remain ‘young.’ Most young people view Facebook as an older people platform that has become extremely political and out of touch; it even might’ve helped to elect President Trump. When Mark Zuckerburg announced he is trying to ‘fix’ Facebook, I believe this means creating a more welcoming, enriching, and interesting space.

Facebook’s partner company, Instagram has done a really phenomenal job of staying true to what they originally set out to do, placing heavy emphasis on visuals and not becoming too political. I believe if Facebook continues to push video and photo content of meaningful, sincere accounts, while screening powerful political messaging, they would be much more successful.

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