Hebrew speakers mock Facebook’s corporate rebrand to Meta

Sana Noor Haq, CNN — Sat, 30 Oct 2021 12:34:03 +0000

(CNN) Social media users in Israel are mocking Facebook’s company name change to Meta, as it sounds similar to the Hebrew word for “dead.”

Many Twitter users scoffed at the social media company’s rebrand — revealed by founder Mark Zuckerberg earlier this week — using the hashtag #FacebookDead. “Somebody did not do their #branding research,” one post read.

Dr Nirit Weiss-Blatt, author of The Techlash and Tech Crisis Communication, tweeted: “In Hebrew, *Meta* means *Dead* The Jewish community will ridicule this name for years to come.”

“Grave error?? Facebook’s new name Meta means dead in Hebrew. Hilarious. #FacebookDead” another user tweeted.

Zuckerberg’s efforts to revamp Facebook come as the company faces what could be its most potent scandal since it launched in 2004.

The social media giant is under the spotlight following the publication this week of “The Facebook Papers,” a series of internal documents obtained by 17 news organizations, including CNN, that underpin whistleblower Frances Haugen’s claims the company is riddled with institutional shortcomings.

The documents reveal how Facebook has propelled misinformation, struggled to eliminate human trafficking-related content on the site, and tried to increase its teenage audience, despite internal research suggesting that its platforms, especially Instagram, can have an adverse effect on their mental health.

Facebook isn’t the first company to be ridiculed after its branding didn’t translate abroad.

In 2019, Kim Kardashian West was accused of cultural appropriation after debuting her shapewear brand, which she initially named Kimono. Kardashian even appeared to have trademarked the word “kimono,” a decision that the mayor of Kyoto, Daisaku Kadokawa, criticized in an open letter on Facebook.

“We think that the names for ‘Kimono’ are the asset shared with all humanity who love Kimono and its culture therefore they should not be monopolized,” Kadokawa wrote.

Kardashian changed the name of her brand to Skims later that year.

In 2017, McDonald’s name change in China raised eyebrows. Customers were left confused when the company swapped Maidanglao, a Chinese iteration of the English name, to Jingongmen, which loosely translates to “Golden Arches.” One customer said it “sounds like a furniture store.”

And when the Nissan Moco was launched in the early 2000s, Spanish-speaking customers may have looked twice, as the word “moco” translates to “bogey.” Needless to say, the name was only used in Japan.

Source: https://www.cnn.com/2021/10/30/tech/hebrew-speakers-mock-facebook-meta-rebrand-intl-scli/index.html

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The post Hebrew speakers mock Facebook’s corporate rebrand to Meta first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

Zuckerberg denies Facebook prioritizes profit over user safety

Diane Bartz and Elizabeth Culliford - Irish Examiner — Wed, 06 Oct 2021 07:27:30 +0000

Whistleblower Frances Haugen called for transparency about how Facebook entices users to keep scrolling, creating ample opportunity for advertisers to reach them.

Former Facebook employee Frances Haugen testifies during a Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation hearing entitled ‘Protecting Kids Online: Testimony from a Facebook Whistleblower’ on Capitol Hill October 5, 2021 in Washington, DC. Picture: Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images

US lawmakers have accused Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg of pushing for higher profits while being cavalier about user safety, and demanded regulators investigate whistleblower accusations that the social media company harms children’s mental health and stokes divisions.

Zuckerberg, hours later in a public Facebook post, defended the company, saying the accusations were at odds with Facebook’s goals.

“The argument that we deliberately push content that makes people angry for profit is deeply illogical,” he wrote. “We make money from ads, and advertisers consistently tell us they don’t want their ads next to harmful or angry content. And I don’t know any tech company that sets out to build products that make people angry or depressed.”

During a Senate Commerce subcommittee hearing, whistleblower Frances Haugen called for transparency about how Facebook entices users to keep scrolling, creating ample opportunity for advertisers to reach them.

“As long as Facebook is operating in the shadows, hiding its research from public scrutiny, it is unaccountable,” said Haugen, a former product manager on Facebook’s civic misinformation team. She left the nearly $1 trillion company with tens of thousands of confidential documents.

“The company’s leadership knows how to make Facebook and Instagram safer, but won’t make the necessary changes because they have put their astronomical profits before people. Congressional action is needed,” Haugen said.

Mr. Zuckerberg said that, at the heart of the accusations “is this idea that we prioritize profit over safety and well-being”. “That’s just not true,” he said.

US lawmakers have accused Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg of pushing for higher profits while being cavalier about user safety. Picture: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Senator Dan Sullivan, said he was concerned how Facebook and subsidiaries like Instagram affected the mental health of children. “We’re going to look back 20 years from now and all of us are going to be like, ‘What the hell were we thinking?'”

Panel chair Senator Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat, said Facebook knew that its products were addictive. “Tech now faces that big tobacco jaw-dropping moment of truth,” he said.

He called for Zuckerberg to testify before the committee, and for the Securities and Exchange Commission and Federal Trade Commission to investigate Facebook.

“Our children are the ones who are victims. Teens today looking in the mirror feel doubt and insecurity. Mark Zuckerberg ought to be looking at himself in the mirror,” Blumenthal said.

Blumenthal said after the hearing that he would want to ask Zuckerberg why he rejected recommendations to make products safer for users.

Zuckerberg, in his post, said Facebook would not stop researching its societal impact. But he wrote that Congress needed to update rules to make clear the legal age for teens to use internet services, how to verify their ages and where to “balance teens’ privacy while giving parents visibility into their activity.”

Haugen said she would encourage “oversight and public scrutiny” into Facebook’s content recommendation algorithms and their consequences. She suggested creating a dedicated body within the federal government to oversee social media companies.

Source: https://www.irishexaminer.com/world/arid-40714322.html

[Disclaimer]

The post Zuckerberg denies Facebook prioritizes profit over user safety first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

Frances Haugen - Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association

Hebrew speakers mock Facebook’s corporate rebrand to Meta

Zuckerberg denies Facebook prioritizes profit over user safety