The Exploited Workers of Data Factories - Social Media

Years ago, when there were no factories, goods were made at home using home-made tools, maybe using some small machines. There were no big businesses and conglomerates, neither big factories. Then came the industrial revolution, and everything changed in a snap. People started building factories filled with machines, which resulted in the mass-production of all goods. The people who lived at home and worked in fields were called to factories. And at that time, those who were then powerful and had money, they put their money in those factories, got them working, got big machines and tools, and put those workers at work. But the workers were treated very poorly. They were paid very little. The working hours were long. The work environment was very pathetic. Very often, people died working in those factories. And if I sum up that condition in one sentence, - the workers were being exploited by a few rich people. 

Industrial Revolution

But this was the condition back then. Today it's 2020. Today the world is different. Our thought process has changed. We have different rules and regulations. And if you look closely, today's factories are different too. Back then, the factories mass-produced consumer goods. Today we have factories of information and mass-producing data. While today's workers are also common people, just like back then and the work condition is relatively good, the one main difference between factories of today and back then is that earlier people got paid for their work. Even if it was less but they were paid. But today, the workers of the data-factories are not being paid at all. So, who are today's workers, and where are those data and information factories? Today we are the workers and these data factories are those websites that collect our data where we willingly submit our data.  Mainly all the social networking sites are data factories. 

Try to understand one thing. Facebook is a data factory whose main assets are our data and information. Because with our data, they show us targeted ads and sell our information to third parties. Even in the upcoming artificial intelligence age, the AI would know more about me than what I would do. And it does so by collecting enough data about me, from my thoughts to my likings and dislikings. If AI has enough data, it can predict with 99% accuracy what you will do the very next second, literally. And this is very fruitful from a commercial perspective. Because if someone knows what I am going to do very next second, he can also sell me things accordingly. That's why not only Facebook and social networking sites, data is very important for all major corporations. Amazon, Google, Microsoft; everyone. 

 Recommended Book - The Internet is Not the Answer

Facebook is also one of those big data factories whose main asset is our data and information. And just like the industrial age, some rich people have put their money on Facebook who is called Investors. And Facebook's top priority is neither its users nor its employees. Facebook's top priorities are its shareholders, its advertisers. And Facebook has provided its tool or machine in everyone's hands: The Facebook app. Through this app, we are all creating content for Facebook, day and night. We all are working for Facebook. Some people also work overtime. Instagram is not a photo-sharing app. It's an app that has employed you as a photographer. People click tens of times for that one perfect photo, apply various filters, and reply to all comments. this is a full-time job and people do it wholeheartedly. Students do it at the cost of their studies. Some people do it at the cost of their mental health. Some people even see their social media profiles as their real identities. And we care so much about our posts and uploads. And after all these efforts, caring so much, working so hard, what do we get in return? Few likes, few comments, and a never-ending timeline which we get to scroll endlessly for free. And we are always scrolling, right? That's everyone's favorite pass time. And, we all by working collectively for these social media sites day and night, by creating content for them, we help them make billions of dollars. There has never been a time in the history of mankind where such an enormous amount of wealth is concentrated in hands of so few people. 

read more - How Internet is Influencing Politics

See, I am not saying that Facebook is evil or that we should stop using these social media sites. All I am saying is that when we see it from a broader perspective, if we see them for what they really are, then we find that these all sites are data-factories, and we all are exploited workers of these data-factories.

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