EST. MMXXVI · A PUBLIC RECORD
2 CONFESSIONS · 42 CASESConfess
CR-01701.07.MMXXVI

I re-weighted a feed algorithm so reactions and comments counted for more than likes. Outrage generates comments. I watched the dashboards tilt toward anger in real time and told myself the system was neutral because I hadn't written 'anger' anywhere in the code.

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Case of Record

Drawn from the public record, written in the ledger's voice. No individual confessed this entry. The mechanism is documented; the taxonomy is the point.

Source Wall Street Journal, "Facebook Tried to Make Its Platform a Healthier Place. It Got Angrier Instead" (2021)

Attribution
No individual confessed this entry
Tags
Rage engagementAlgorithmic manipulationMisinformation amplification

This entry is part of the ledger’s canon, not Volume I. It establishes a named mechanism so that a confession has something to be measured against — read why the canon exists. Real confessions live in Volume I, and the voluntary contributions given alongside them fund scholarships at the School of Critical Design.

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