Who said that Facebook it doesn't have any more news, that it's even dead and that it's only for boomers who send themselves Good morning coffee?
This social network has definitely changed over the years, adapting to the new roles that platforms have taken on. Platforms that, from channels for getting to know each other, have transformed into enormous advertising, means of Entertainment and disclosure. In short, we can say that social networks They are “the new TV,” in the sense that they have had a comparable cultural impact.
So it also updates Facebook, XNUMX 5 main novelties which do not only concern specific functions, but political ones. Changes which therefore open a window onto How is Meta positioning itself in the current global context?, with big tech clearly demonstrating their real social and political potential.
Content index
1) Facebook introduces the Community Notes system
We've already talked about it: Meta has trashed fact-checking of third parties in the United States. Inspired by the model already adopted by X (formerly Elon Musk's Twitter), Facebook in the US now uses the Community Note system. How does it work?
Users add contextual notes to posts, providing additional information and helping to counter misinformation without resorting to direct censorship. A decentralized solution, and according to Facebook It is a novelty that should empower the community, balance the contents and promote a more transparent and balanced debate. But are the active participation of the users and the quality of the information provided really enough for this?
An external and qualified body can perhaps be more impartial than users who have gut opinions.. People who reach polarized conclusions without thoroughly informing themselves, on the one hand because they may not even have access to certain data, on the other because they may lack the tools to avoid falling into interpretations that are too subjective. But above all: who will guarantee us that they will not be a wave of muzzle to evaluate the contents?
2) Less censorship: will fake news be the price of freedom?
Meta reviews its moderation policies, adopting a more permissive approach on sensitive issues such as immigration and gender identity. This change is intended to encourage more open political debate, reducing the risk of excessive censorship that could limit freedom of expression. The new guidelines focus primarily on content removal and violate local laws or that represent a direct threat, while controversial opinions will be less subject to moderation.
It is tempting to fully appreciate this choice. But if we combine this policy with the elimination of external fact-checking bodies, we become aware of two potential dangers: the proliferation of fake news and an imbalance between freedom and computer security.
3) Eliminate third-party AR filters
We have already seen this when dealing with the What's new on Instagram 2025?. Now facial filters and augmented reality effects created by third-party developers are no more. This decision marks a significant turning point in the strategy of Meta, which in the meantime focuses on emerging computing platforms, like i AR glasses , virtual reality. The program Spark AR (which allowed developers to create and distribute custom filters) in fact it was gradually decommissioned. We now have at our disposal only official effects managed directly by Meta.
As it happened for Instagram, here too we are divided. On one side we have users who fear the loss of creative opportunities, on the other a platform that professes to promote authenticity and promises more advanced AR experiences integrated with its hardware ecosystem.
4) Views matter more than Impressions
Another new feature recently introduced by Facebook concerns the content performance measurement metrics. From this year, in line with Instagram, Views are more important than Impressions.
Le Views are only recorded when a user actually sees the content, even if only for a millisecond; the Impression instead count the number of times a content is loaded on a screen.
It may seem like a small difference, but this represents a significant change in perspective for creators and companies. Or rather: it could reinforce the already existing need to create even more immediate and captivating content, with increasingly engaging hooks. Which, on the one hand, creates interesting challenges for those who deal with advertising narrative; on the other hand it risks penalising less sensationalist contents and contributing to favouring the current brainrot caused by constant exposure to content that is too short, too simple and useless.
5) Greater integration with WhatsApp and Instagram
Another Facebook novelty that we have already seen in Instagram updates. Meta this year introduced new features that allow Connect WhatsApp, Facebook and Instagram more smoothly.
Among these, one of the most interesting possibilities is that of Share WhatsApp status updates directly to Facebook and Instagram stories, making it easier to distribute content across multiple social networks at once. Another important aspect of this novelty is the connection between WhatsApp and virtual reality viewers. Meta quest. This allows users to manage their chats directly through VR devices.
This is a new development that is part of Meta's strategy to create a increasingly interconnected ecosystem, where different platforms integrate to offer a smoother user experience. Here too, doubts about the management of personal data and on the security of communications remain.
With these new features, is Facebook really going back to its origins?
Mark Zuckerberg therefore through these innovations officially announces a strategic turning point for Facebook for 2025: to bring the platform back to its roots and make it a cultural reference point again.
The specific details of this change have not yet been fully revealed, beyond the updates we just read about. Which, rather than seeming like a return to basics, resemble a turning point towards a future where users have ever greater responsibility, where is there apparently is more freedom, but also more risks. A contradictory turn, where we see a focus on community and authenticity, threatened by the lack of centralized control that on the one hand seems good, but on the other worries about the possible proliferation of disinformation and artificial intelligences who pretend to be users.
So Facebook will never be able to go back to how it was before. Facebook is no longer and can no longer be just a virtual space where old friends from high school or college meet up. Now Facebook is an open market, increasingly open, and an increasingly free and uncontrolled channel of information and disinformation.
Then, as usual, the choice is always up to us.
We could continue to use Facebook to see how badly a schoolmate of ours has aged and then go back to our lives: do you remember Fabris in the film Classmates by Carlo Verdone?
We may become even more misinformed on Facebook than categories of people at risk already do, because today we have even greater possibilities. Or we could use this opportunity to tackle together the difficult facets of an increasingly complex reality., which need to be discussed freely and without mincing words.
