Facebook Should Be Treated As Drug Company

“Facebook is behaving like an errant drug company,” says the chairman of a UK-based innovation think tank, 2020Plus.

“We would be horrified if a drug company was allowed to amass a fortune by selling a product known to encourage any form of addiction, including dopamine addiction, without at least having to announce the same on its packaging. 

“We'd be even more disturbed if the same drug provider offered a remedy that said, ‘Take more of our drug and you'll be fine.’
 
“We should be no less disturbed that Facebook refuses to acknowledge the potential side effects of its product. Perhaps it is time Facebook was treated as a drug company.”

This is according to social futurist, author and global innovation speaker Mal Fletcher.

In an editorial published today, Fletcher describes a “sizeable body of research” into the dopamine-inducing impact of social media engagement. 

Much of this research has been focused on Facebook, in large part because it was one of the first social media platforms and is certainly the world's most ubiquitous, with more than one billion people logging in every day.


The research shows that continued - though not necessarily heavy - social media activity releases small doses of dopamine, a chemical associated with alertness and feelings of pleasure, into the user's brain. 

While small shots of this chemical may do little damage, continued small doses over time may produce the cumulative effect of larger amounts, producing a problematic addiction.

Mal Fletcher often lectures civic, political and industry leaders worldwide on the potential positive and negative effects of our growing engagement with digital and automation technologies.

He believes that, faced with mounting international research revealing harmful side-effects, Facebook has often behaved as tobacco companies once did when confronted with claims about addiction and cancer.

“Facebook has often shrugged off criticism with claims that the evidence is inconclusive. Now, it says the answer is to engage with friend even more, via Facebook.”

In many ways, social media platforms offer a helpful, informative and entertaining service, adds Fletcher. However, they should be required to acknowledge and mitigate the dangers. 
 
Perhaps,” he concludes, “Social media platforms should feature a warning similar to the one used by British gambling companies use: BEFORE the fun stops, stop!’”

Full editorial: Should Facebook be Treated as a Drug Company?

For comment or interviews:

Email: media@2020plus.net