Dear Readers: On July 12, Cutetropolis will eliminate its page on Facebook. Readers who rely on Facebook to get updates about new posts should consider joining the Cutetropolis mailing list instead. For the moment, the Cutetropolis Twitter feed will continue.
In recent years, Facebook’s impact upon society has become increasingly harmful, to the point where major advertisers have paused their spending on the platform. Facebook’s response has been an arrogant “they’ll be back” and the platform’s overall response to its global impact has been to nibble at the problem around the edges rather than fundamentally change its profit model.
Individual users and small businesses such as Cutetropolis must also reckon with the impact of their participation, however small it might be. Facebook draws its power from people and can no longer be trusted to use that power for good. We have made a deal with, if not the Devil, the next worst thing.
And canceling that deal will not end Facebook or even humble it a little. But it will allow me and my tiny website to proceed with clean hands, confident that my attempts to spread joy will not empower a tool used to spread hate.
Good move. Thank you.
I’m happy you’re doing this. I closed my account after the Cambridge Analytica hoo-hah (at least I hope i did – tech is not my strong suit).
sorry to hear you politicize on cutetropolis, a site which was always an haven free from horror. As you have decided that facebook, and apparently all online platforms should be able to censor free speech, I have to reply, have to tell you that I disagree with your position, and your decision. While i disagree most strongly, I will not cancel you out, I will, when i can, still donate to your site. Then why am i writing? Well, I am an old woman, I have seen a lot in my lifetime, known personally of how things have been in other countries. I tell you outright, and with fear in my heart, you have given into propaganda….you are taking a step that is the result of a wish to do the right thing…but it is not the right thing. God help us, it is not the right thing.
Why? Because the pressure to silence free speech, on the basis that you do not like what you hear, NO matter where that pressure arises…. is nothing more than the thin end of the wedge…the camel’s nose under the tent flap….what follows is groups of people, people we have not authorized…deciding what we may read, what we may say, what we may teach…and if we refuse, we will be cancelled…punished…eventually, jailed or killed. While I do like what I see or hear on public forums…I would not silence them. that is the difference between democracy and mob rule.
It is a hard fact, but it is true. Think long and hard please, this is very, very serious, and I cannot tell you how disappointed i am to visit your site and see your decision to support censorship. And you may rest assured this writer also does not like the unhealthy state of our public discourse.
correction…“while i do NOT like what i see or hear on some public forums”…
Mike is also exercising free speech. Also, censorship is one thing, but not taking a stand against hate speech is another.
Yes yes yes Courtney B !!!!
OMG yes.
What Courtney B said!!
For the record, I support free speech on social media, including the vaguely defined “hate speech”. I agree that people should be free to express their opinions because everyone is free to unfollow or not engage with someone they don’t like.
Nonetheless, I left Facebook years ago. Why? Because I don’t appreciate being emotionally manipulated by its native advertising algorithms.
The site changed dramatically over the years as more and more native advertising was allowed. I understand they need advertisers to keep the site free for users, but tactics matter.
So, Mike I support you leaving Facebook and I am glad you did.
Exactly.
Yep.
👍🏼
https://xkcd.com/1357/
Somehow I doubt Randall Munroe would maintain that opinion if his site hoster or internet service provider were to cut off his service because they disliked his comic. After all, website hosters and internet service providers are private companies and don’t owe anyone free speech.
And sorry, but that’s what “hate speech” is defined right now: opinions people don’t like, and are bothered by their traction on social media.
Freedom of the press belongs to those who own one, or in the case of web hosting, rent space on one. But private companies who terminate contacts without cause do so at their own risk. And since a website can be seamlessly moved from one host to another in less than 48 hours, the result would at most be inconvenience.
It’s more than a little inconvenience when other hosts can also refuse to have him as a customer.
Let’s be real here and admit that there is a LOT of problematic material on social media that is demonstrably harmful to people.
Peddling fake cancer cures and other illnesses for which no cure exists, bogus weightloss cures, catfishing schemes, flat earthers, moon landing is fake, Armenian genocide deniers, Scientologists and other “religious” sects, etc.
Nobody takes any great issue with ANY that even though it’s – at minimum – demonstrably harmful to people’s health. Why? Because they don’t have a large following or appeal.
For the record, I would have no problem if any of these companies actually spelled out what they mean by “hate”. But they don’t.
Not a single company has publicly stated they conducted an audit of their entire site and decided that topic X will be removed because it’s hateful, and here’s a definition of what “hate” is.
The legal system has a definition of “hate speech” is, what “fraud” is, etc. When social media companies decide that’s not good enough for their platform, the onus is on them to spell out their alternative definition.
This is as far as I’m willing to add to this conversation. I wish you well.
Sorry, but that’s exactly what he means. You should read it once more, carefully.
Private companies are free to set their own rules, as long as they don’t break any laws of course. This is what Facebook is doing.
Other private companies are free to leave or stop advertising on Facebook if they don’t like Facebooks rules.
So what is your problem with that?
Lindy, Thank you for your thoughtful comment and your support of the site. My reply:
Mike I agreed with everything you stated, and I think leaving Facebook is a very positive move all around. I rarely comment here, but love your website, I have it bookmarked in my browser so it’s readily available when I need my mood elevated. Thank you so much for all the work you put into it.
As a lifelong supporter of the First Amendment, and a firm opponent of censorship, I fail to see how one person choosing to stop participating on one membership-based social media platform meets any criterion for the definition of censorship.
Mike, the owner of Cutetropolis, is choosing to withdraw from one social media platform. He is not stopping anyone else from being a member of and posting on that platform; even if he wanted to (and I have no reason to suppose that he does), he does not have that power. He is not even advising anyone else to stop being a member of and posting on that platform. He’s just making a choice as to where he wants his own writing to appear.
I don’t want to minimize the depth of your concern. I simply feel that it is misplaced in this particular case. Your vigilance about censorship does you credit, in my opinion, but personally I think you have got the wrong end of the stick here.
You can continue to post on Facebook if you like. Mike is not stopping you from doing that. You, and only you, get to decide whether or not to have an account on Facebook—at least until Zuckerberg, or his algorithms, decide your posts should no longer be viewed there. Whether or not Facebook making your posts hard for your followers to find is censorship is an open question.
Mike, however, is not deciding what anyone can find or read. He is publishing his own website. If the US government prevented him from publishing that website, THAT would be censorship. If the US government decided what we could or could not read, THAT would be censorship.
Choosing to stick with one publisher and leave another is NOT censorship. Exercising choice can perhaps be viewed as opposing, or even the antithesis of censorship—though I am willing to concede that this idea (which I’ve just come up with) might not bear close scrutiny in all circumstances.
Remember, please, that Facebook is a for-profit enterprise. Nobody who freely chooses to spend their time, energy, and money someplace other than Facebook is practicing or participating in censorship. They are simply exercising freedom of choice in a crowded marketplace.
Yes. Well said!
YES!!
Well said!
Thanks Mike.
Good for you, Mike! I’d also recommend others to use an RSS reader (I use Reeder on iOS and Mac) to get all the new posts.
+1 to the RSS feeder!
Good work, Mike, for taking a stand against unethical corporations.
I second that emotion on the RSS. Also on Mike’s stance on Facebook. Don’t give Zuckerberg anything.
Query: What’s an RSS reader?
RSS (short for Really Simple Syndication) is a way to read content from websites gathered in one space, using RSS reader software. See the top RSS readers here:
https://lifehacker.com/the-best-rss-readers-and-news-aggregation-apps-1839030732
I updated my information for your site on my blog to remove the link to the Facebook page.
This is the right call.
Thank you. For many, many different reasons I have always refused to have a Facebook account and seems like I have made the right decision for me. I’ve always resented that some companies won’t let you connect with them other than through Facebook (and they lost my business for that). Stand for what you feel is right in this, Mike. I feel most of not nearly all of us will be right with you.
As this might mean even less money for Mike to pay for the site and server costs I suggest that we all chip in a bit extra in support. I just did, even if the amount was embarrassingly small.
Thanks for bringing that up. I just did too.
Thanks Arne, that’s a great idea.
Thanks, Arne! Great idea!
✔️👍🏼
Mike, I support your choice; perhaps more to the point, I support your right to make a choice, one way or the other. You didn’t owe us an explanation, but I appreciate your providing it. You are a stand-up guy in my book.
Thank you. I knew I had to announce the move because Facebook-based fans will need a bit of time to make alternate arrangements if they want. And since I had to announce it, I might as well explain it, since it’s hard not to have an opinion on Facebook right now.
Yes.
“All that is necessary for evil to triumph is that good men do nothing.” — Edmund Burke
“Well done, you.” — me
Yep.
Exactly.
Mike,
I agree with your decision. Although I do have a Facebook account, I don’t like it. The only reason that I do is to keep in touch with friends and family members who have a low tolerance for email. I really don’t get that, but hey, I can’t force them to use it.
I am on facebook for similar reasons, but I don’t blame anyone for not wanting to be on it. I only see Cutetropolis posts when the algorithm deigns to show them to me, anyway. (I have been subscribed to email notifications for the site from the beginning.)
Thanks, Mike. I support your decision and will try to toss bigger tips your way.
The only reason Facebook wants you is so they can sell you data, your interests, your comings and goings. With your ISP info they know more about you than your family. And they sell that. For them it is all about money. No thanks. Good move, Mike.
Exacrly. The true purpose of Facebook is data collection, not “bringing people together.”
Bravo Mike, Bravo.
Cutetroplis, for me, and I suspect for many others, has been an uplifting, comforting, and safe place to visit.
NTMTOM, thank you for taking a stand for what is right, for personal choice, for this community, and especially for the sanctity of cuteness. Bravo!
YES!!
I applaud you taking this stand, and have signed up for email notifications. Onward!
I applaud this decision!! Thank you, Mike!
I’ve been on Cutetropolis.com since the very beginning, almost every day, though I rarely comment. It’s always a happy, wonderful place to visit, and was sincerely needed when Cuteoverload stopped publishing.
I second (third?) what Mike and others have said – the first amendment and freedom of speech protect us only from censorship or criminal prosecution from the government for things that we say. Freedom of speech does not (and should not) mean that everyone has a right to say whatever they want in either corporate owned forums (like Facebook) or community owned forums (like Cutetropolis). Community oriented forums like Cutetropolis play a very important role in allowing communities to create their own standards of what kind of speech is appropriate – rather than the government deciding.
Sometimes I think us folks in the United States would understand and appreciate our freedom of speech better if we were all more aware of the places in the world where you can be jailed (or worse) for what you say.
I left Facebook years ago, so of course I support this move! Well done, Mike.
I am not a Facebook fan.😝 I approve Mike dumping it, but that is a choice for each individual to make. Mike is just deciding where you can “buy” his site. Walmart sells some things I like, but I prefer to shop elsewhere. I’m not censoring Walmart or preventing others from going there. If I owned Target and decided not to sell a certain kind of product, that doesn’t mean I’m preventing others from purchasing it, they just have to go elsewhere.🤷♀️
I wholeheartedly support Mike’s decision, but I also want to say how much I appreciate the thoughtful and civil discussion about it. Thanks for being such a great community.
I’m an OG Cute Overload-er and though I lurk I’m not generally a commentator. I will continue to check this page daily as I have always. It was nice to see the FB posts but I support your decision whole-heartedly. I keep my FB mostly for learning about events and supporting my favorite local businesses. I am actually about to “cull” my friends list which is something I have never done before and I don’t have a huge list to start with. The stunning display of ignorance and hate disguised as ignorance is more that I can stand. As an adult, it is my job and responsibility to educate myself about issues in the world so that my opinions are informed and based in facts. Others seem to have lots of opinions but not lots of facts to back them up. What is really sad is that I could probably make some of their arguments for them and make them much more cogent and effective. But that’s not my job. And they can continue to post what they like. I just do not have to look at it.
I’ve had to mute or turn off notifications for some friends and I think I’m about to remove some more. They’re people I worked with about 10 years ago when I lived in FL and I’ve had no real contact with them since then so really nothing to lose. I totally agree with MIke is doing, this is his site and if he feels FB is not a benefit plus it’s not a organization/company he wants to support then he can do what he wants. I don’t believe censorship or free speech comes into at all. I don’t like some of FB practices and I’ve toyed with the idea of deleting my account but sometimes it’s the only way to keep up with a few of my friends and family. Let’s just say my account is totally locked down with almost every privacy filter engaged, ad tracking turned off, I post very little, and I’m extremely skeptical of anything that comes across. I also fact check independently anything that friends post or pops up in my feed as “news”.
I use Facebook Purity aka Fluff Busting Purity to keep my timeline very clean and in my control. I used to just mute people but I now feel it’s disingenuous on my part. If I don’t want to tolerate what they post, I should be honest and cut the cord. It’s not likely they will miss me in any way, either, I’m guessing.
I love Fluff Busting Purity, I don’t see any of the crap that can foul up your timeline. Now I just wish I could do that with some people and their political posts. Definitely time to cut the cord with a few people.
Hooray and good on you, notthatMike. That is a righteous and right thing to do. Zuckerberg and Faceplant are just vile.
Good decision!
I support Mike in his decision. And his bravery for explaining his reasoning which can be risky these days.
I will say that Facebook enabled me to find two very specific PTSD/Trauma/Women’s Art groups that have helped me tremendously in my recovery. I also read a town specific group that just directed me to a mobile dog groomer and propane tank delivery. So I am keeping my account.
Left a tip and a thumbs up. Good work, good man.
I am always a couple of weeks behind in reading the posts, but I support this move also. I do maintain a Facebook account in order to to try and spread a little light in the world, and to debunk some of the false nonsense there.
It’s irritating when people get angry because even something like Facebook won’t allow them to lie and pass on proven falsehoods. Unless, of course, you’re a politician and pay them to do so. Then they’re fine with that.
Well said.