Last week on The Urbane Way, I talked about social news sites and mentioned how some users will “game” the system — in other words, manipulate the popularity of content to increase its visibility. This kind of activity is against many sites’ Terms of Service, and while these users may be in the minority, it does happen and does negatively impact the experience for those who are truly seeking good content.
A recent CNET article titled “Digg controversy buries journalistic objectivity” plays into this very idea. As the story goes, a liberal news organization, AlterNet, is claiming that conservatives are intentionally burying stories on Digg.com through a “campaign of censorship,” creating multiple accounts and padding votes by voting down Digg submissions that lean liberal. AlterNet says:
“This model also made it very susceptible to external gaming, whereby users from certain groups attempt to push their viewpoint or articles to the front page to give them traction.”
As far as I’m concerned, no one wins when a site that is intended to be a democracy turns into a breeding ground for agendas and political bickering. Political news no doubt has a place on social news sites, but when we start experiencing organized campaigns meant to quiet dissenting opinions, I think we lose a lot of value.
So we’re curious: Have you ever noticed a social news site like Digg or StumbleUpon leaning one way or the other? Is this just an isolated incident?
Post by Erica Finley, senior journalist at The Urbane Way and @Erica_Urbane on Twitter. At The Urbane Way, we specialize in social media marketing and PR and lifestyle branding. How can we help you?
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