Can Your Friend's Facebook Newsfeeds Be Considered News?

The popular social networking site "Facebook" has become the primary method for individuals to share their social, personal, and even academic information. Individuals in this site can also rapidly received updates on stories and information posted by individuals and organizations that they follow. This gives Facebook a wide coverage of people and therefore, the exchange of information occurs faster. However, can everything posted on this site be considered newsworthy information?

According to What is News, newsworthy information should be current, influential and prominent. There is no doubt that sometimes Facebook's updates possess these characteristics. For example, through Facebook, users are able to obtain instant updates on issues or events that are currently happening around their society. Secondly, Facebook's news feed can also offer influential information because companies use it to market their new products, obtain feedback, and attract new potential customers. These products usually become influential in our society due to the large amount of individuals that start talking about them. Third, Facebook also distributes prominent information. Politicians are currently using this site to make vital information available to the public. For example, Senator Luis Gutierrez used it to inform undocumented students about the deferral action that will make them eligible to obtain a work permit. In this case, Facebook was one of the best ways to distribute this information since majority of its users are high school and college students.

In conclusion, Facebook can be termed as a useful site to deliver news to all of its users. This site is so popular that information can be seen by a large amount of individuals in a matter of minutes. However, it is important to remember that not all the news posted is reliable and trustworthy. This makes it prudent for a Facebook user to make sure that the news feed is trustworthy before considering it genuine news.