“Like”: Towards a dictatorship of number
Type de matériel :
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Users of “social” networks are engaged in a continuous performance that is punctuated with “likes,” which have become a new ritual of interaction. Since “like” is a sign of agreement and approval that can, through the tyranny of mere number, produce a truth-effect, what becomes problematic is human beings’ relations to ways of accessing knowledge and evaluating ideas. The major challenge in this goes to the very heart of how democracy works: the latter consists in flushing out manipulation and false identities and in preventing the reliability and value of information from being measured solely in terms of the number of “likes” it has received. This article explores the role and the status of the content that circulates on social networks and seeks ways in which the aim and object of these online networks can once again become a venue for sharing, which will enhance the common interest.
Réseaux sociaux