Facebook adds a “Why am I seeing this post?” tool

CAPE TOWN – Facebook has added a new tool called “Why am I seeing this post?” with the aim of aiding to stop the spread of unsuitable or misleading content on the site.

This comes in the form of a  feature, which is similar to the “Why am I seeing this ad?” was introduced in 2014 on the social platform.

 Ramya Sethuraman, product manager at Facebook said in a statement: "The goal of News Feed is to show people the posts that are most relevant to them. ‘Why am I seeing this post?’, which can be found in the drop-down menu in the right-hand corner of a post, explains how your past interactions impact the ranking of posts in your News Feed.”

 According to Facebook, the tool can be used to let users know the following information:

• Why you’re seeing a certain post in your News Feed — for example, if the post is from a friend you made, a Group you joined, or a Page you followed.
• What information generally has the largest influence over the order of posts, including: (a) how often you interact with posts from people, Pages or Groups; (b) how often you interact with a specific type of post, for example, videos, photos or links; and (c) the popularity of the posts shared by the people, Pages and Groups you follow.
• Shortcuts to controls, such as See First, Unfollow, News Feed Preferences and Privacy Shortcuts, to help you personalise your News Feed.?

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Written by: Gabriella Steyn

Guzzle Media