Troy

Actually it is not very complicated at all. Nothing designed to be used by the masses is designed to be complicated. Even 45 has mastered it to the point where he plays the media like a fiddle. Cynique, I'm not exactly loosing sleep over your statement. I'm just not gonna join the chorus of Zuck and other white folks and put Minister Farrakhan in the same class as a Hitler. Yes you are right about not having to be a killer to be called a Nazi today, but that is a problem because the term has lost it's meaning and confuses people. Some really do believe Farrakhan is as bad as Hitler. This is particularly troublesome when other Bkack people do it. You condemn Farrakhan for being "complicit in Malcolm's execution." Do you also condemn Muhammad Ali or do you worship him like the other white people? We can't keep allowing white people to tell us whuch Bkack people are acceptable. On lighter note: did you notice coffee cup on the last GOT episode? (That was a good episode)

You are confusing a lack of affinity with a lack of understanding. I've used Twitter since it was invented. You don't get as many followers as i have not knowing how to use it Mel. I use Twitter, but I don't allow it to use me. Again, this is something you can't see. Twitter can dissappear tomorrow and it will make no difference to me. Acutally, if it meant not hearing about anither tweet from 45 I wish it would go away tomorrow.

Thats all you got sis? Check the age of aalbc.com, a site I started after serveral years of building websites for other businesses. I've been online since 1981. Do you really wanna go there? Again you won't look beyond the individual. You believe Facebook and Twitter provide a societal good, largely, I suspect because you and Kylie (whoever she is) personally derive some benefit from it. That makes no sense. Does she know HTML and CSS? Is money your only goal or measure of success? Maybe you'd be better off taking a class with Kylie if that is the case. Time will tell whether the platform responsible for disseminating 45's lies and propaganda provides a benefit to society. Obviously I don't think it does, but you'll come around.

Yes, but you see them. In fact you've seen enough of them to make a judgment call about whether he should he be on the Twitter and are even talking about his tweets here. Who decides how his tweets are seen and makes it into the trending topics? You are not ready to see it now... it is a red/blue pill thing.

Yes @Pioneer1 I'm still following the thread. I follow all of them (at least right now). You dont need to rely on memory just search for her statement.

Word. My God, who cares about this birth... really? I'm not even sure most Brits give a crap -- none that I know do.

Whoa... hold on there lets not get carried away. Black Nazi is a bit much don't yi3u think? How many Jews has Farrakhan killed? I'll tell you: none. Have you listened to Farrakhan in context or are you just parroting what Facebook says? I just now read @Pioneer1's response and see I'm being repetitive. @Mel Hopkins why are you surprised Tariq has not been booted from Twitter? Are you surprised 45 hasn't been booted too? Do you see tweets from Tariq? I quess that means you must agree with him, using your reasoning from our other conversation.

No. If you only rely on our subjective and anecdotal experiences you will aways be misled. But Mel you don't normally do this why now? How long have you been teaching Mel? Why tell ne how to teach? Nevermind... I know the answer really does not matter to you. Del grow up. This is not a battle. Mel's challenges to my position helps me think though my beliefs and exposes me to opposing points of views. Look, I have a lot more experience with the web than Mel and it is my livelihood, but that does not mean I know everything. She has strong opinions hopefully she us getting something from the exchange too. In fact, she would be engaging if she was not. So @Delano based upon your response are you saying that marketers don't know how to create demand where none exusted before, or are you just gonna sit on the sidelines instigating?

This is simply untrue. Are you seriously trying to tell me the abusive pimps and sex traffickers are reacting to demand that was preexisting? Sure women sell sex, but the abusive pimp is pure exploitation. @Delano took marketing in B-School I'll let him explain how demand is created. Are you also saying that introducing crack into our communities was meeting a preexisting behavior; to get strung out, steal from you mamma, and give 50 cent blow jobs for your next fix? Come on now Mel? Stop defending the bad behavior of these companies. "I." I," "I." You two can't seem to reason beyond your own noses. Again, keep using Instagram, but don't try to convince me (yourselves really) that your boy Zuck is providing a societal good. He is not. Do you defend Wall Street, Big Pharma, and Big Tobacco with the same vigor? There is no difference. Are you really putting the impact of a billboard on par with that of social media?! Social media is a billboard on steroids. Mel. You know this... Again Mel you have a habit of making this issues about us. OK, so you and I were not influenced by billboards to smoke cigarette -- big deal. You do know that cancer caused from cigarette smoking is one of the nations biggest killers right? Just because you and I don't smoke does that mean that others, indeed many others, will be killed by the heavy influence from marketers to smoke.

@Mel Hopkins your statement was: My deleting Instagram will certainly solve the problem of their attempting to influence my behavior. Mel I'm a healthy, heterosexual Black man; it would not be too much of a leap to assume I might be titillated by that photo. I can tell you that is a hot photo. Mel you keep comparing your feed to mine to justify differences in why I see big booty girls and you don't that is flawed reasoning. Now you and Del wanna joke around and make me out to be some big time consumer of porn. Have fun. I don't have a problem with porn, but I don't want it pushed to me. One of many reasons I don't use these social media properties. I want to exercise more control over what I consume online. Now you can try to justify the reasoning for what they put I'm our feeds, and why it works for you, but I have contempt for their business practices. Unfortunately I can't put my head in the sand and make believe they don't exist or have influence any more than i can ignore Amazon's.

That is a bold and unsubstantiated assumption Mel. What would be the inputs to Instagram's algorithm since I have used Instragram sparingly over the last decade, have shut down my facebook account, and don't consume internet porn? Again, this is the reasoning some crack dealers used to justify the pernicious behavior -- they wre only meeting a demand in the market. Sure if you show me a big booty gal, I'm gonna look. But I did NOT install Instragram on my cell phone for this. Suppose I was giving a demonstration in class? When I used to read Twitter. I would see hardcore porn occasionally. Stuff ckearly involation of the own standards... so much for algorithms. That we can agree on. I'll be removing the app as soon as I demonstrate their shopping feature.

See, this is the problem. These social media companies tell us it their algorithms are based upon our behavior -- this is no different than the purveyors of smut, gangsta rap, drugs, celebrity gossip, oxycodone, social media, and anything that does not serve us. The reality is the these businesses drive demand for this stuff and have slickly laid the blame of our addictions at our feet. I believe the photo of the big booty girl is shown more frequently for the reasons I stated -- perhaps at the exclusion of content I might find more valuable. @Delano I can't escape it if Instagram shows it to me each time someone I follow posts it.

OK @Pioneer1 where was Babylon located?

Actually that is how is how works Mel social media decides what appears in you feed (even it is just amongst your friends). According to your research I'm following 1,200 people and judging from that snapshot I actually know a small percentage of those people. Kia Storm is author, as you pointed out; that may explain why we are following each other. Again I had no idea how many people was following or how many were following me until just now. I never set up the abilty to shop on my instagran feed (got side tracked). At any rate, of the 1,200 people I'm following the Instagram algorithm determined which post was most likely to keep me engaged. Again, judging by the photo they put in my feed they did a damn good job -- I forgot all about selling books 😉

@Mel Hopkins I don't know enough about the subject to shed much more light. However Christianity is derivative from Judaism. Jesus was a Jewish dude preaching to other Jews right? Judaism itself is derived from much older systems and beliefs based in Africa. Obviously, since modern day "middle east" is in Africa.

@Mel Hopkins I'm real careful what is on my phone (though I downed this image so that I may share it here), because I'm always giving it to people to look at images on it and you know how nosy people can get. Still I would not expect Instagram to send you an image like this. But for a single, sexually active, man like myself -- Facebook/Instagram knows what will pique my interest As you know you do not have to have accounts on these systems in order for them to monitor and manipulate you.

I know, I know I said I was gonna not use Facebook (or their products) anymore. But I have an upcoming lecture on ecommerce and it would be incomplete if did not talk about tools like shoppable Instagram. In the past I spoke strickly about hosting one's own store but figured I'd mention alternatives, so I installed Instagram on my phone and logged in (I already had an AALBC account) and attempt to sell some books. The image below was the very first thing I saw. Obviously it was designed to grab my attention -- it did. But I resisted swipping for more and I realized I can't sell books in the environment... I have no incentive or desire to compete with this on Instagram, but I'll go through the process and reap what value I can out of Instagram as a pedagolgical tool. It is like trying to be a conscious female rapper in a world where Cardi B and Minaj rule.

Notice the bald stylist did not have one of these wigs on. This must have been the tyoe of thing Steve Harvey wore before he wised up.

Funny @Chevdove I'd not considered the reason to be as simple as vanity -- maybe you are correct. Sure this is not only a Black woman's problem. I Image hair care is a multi-billion dollar industry. I don't doubt having someone else pamper you by washing your hair, massaging you, and even listen to you talk about your problems feels good. These are all qualities I'd desire (require) in a life partner :-)

Does it really matter?

So you don't believe Farrakhan runs a hate group. Do you think Marky Z was justified in kicking Farrakhan to curb? If not should people do somthing about it? Do we just should just let Zuck tell the world Farrakhan runs a hate group without consequence? Of course we will, because we are constructly weak as a people...

@Delano do you, or anyone for that matter, believe Farrakhan runs a "hate group?"

Now I don't think that a man like Minister Farrakhan spends time connecting with family and friends on Facebook. Nor do I think he needs, or desires Facebook, anymore than you or I. I just went to Facebook and still see plenty of Farrakhan related content, so I have know idea what Facebook's banning of Farrakhan really means. I read the NY Times account and it was not illuminating. Then it dawned on me! Facebook made this announcement in desperate move to garner attention and visitors to their site. Well it worked on me, 'cause I scrolled through Facebook site for the first time in the better part of a year. My overall reaction was that there was nothing there to see, and that I was manipulated, by a platform quickly hurtling toward irrelevancy. Good riddance.

I shared the following quote on Facebook and Twitter just now; “While media attention has waned in recent years, the demand for, and publication of, Urban Fiction has not.” As we all know, you should not take anything you read on social media at face value. Most of what we read there is designed to drive engagement and sell advertising. Out right lies, hyperbole, and controversy are tools of the trade. In this case, I was exaggerating. While it is true that the media has moved on from Urban Fiction, years ago, the resulting lack of attention and other factors have indeed driven down demand for these titles. Books by authors like Terri Woods and Nikki Turner that dominated my list a decade ago, are absent on my 2018 bestsellers list. The book that arguably sparked media attention on the genre, The Coldest Winter Ever by Sister Souljah did make our bestsellers list for 2018. But it is a fantastically popular, and now iconic title -- part of the Black literary canon if you will. But Urban Fiction is the the only genre marginalized by mainstream media. Outside of a handful of authors, unless you are an African or Celebrity. You are lucky to get any mainstream media coverage. Children's book authors have been getting a lot of attention lately, but here the focus is on "diversity" and not "Black." However, if you are a fan of Urban Fiction don't fret too much; the media's focus attention on Urban Fiction will return once again.

I dated a model for a few years when I was much younger. She was on the cover of magazines and the like. In her photo shoots she always wore a wigs. One magazine was a Black hair care magazine she was in the cover wearing a wig. I found this to be misleading, because the article covered hair care not wig wearing. I write all this to explain @Chevdove that I do not believe all women in the photos you posted are sporting their own natural hair. As a result, it is difficult to get into a discussion of this type if you don't believe the source information... But I get why women love to talk about this stuff. I presented at a Bloggers conference one. It was 90% women. Interestingly most wore their hair in what appeared to me to be natural styles, and many were quite attractive. To my disappointment about 1/3 of the Bloggers wrote about hair. There was this really popular Blogger they were all seemingly attempting to emulate, because they kept bringing her name up (I wish I could remember her name). At any rate, the whole event was boring to me -- thought the women seemed to enjoy themselves. I can't understand women's fixation with hair. I'm not passing judgment. I'm just making an observation. I don't get people obsession with baseball either. In every relationship I've been in my partner invested a lot of time, energy, money, and emotions over there hair. And boy, whenever I was asked how I thought their hair looked the answer must be "It looks great honey!" and I better say it, with feeling, like I mean it too :-)