Avery K. Tingle, The Gamer Author

Facebook is tough to figure out. It’s easy to blame the platform for the vast overload and proliferation of misinformation that has led to countless deaths and acts of violence. But Facebook is just that: a platform. Facebook does not share content. It allows content to be shared.

I’m not a fan of government regulation of any social media platform. It opens a door that could lead to a very, very bad place. The problem with that is this: Facebook has proven that if you leave people to their own devices, they will gleefully destroy each other. Hence the Facebook conundrum.

Andrew Bosworth recently sat down with Axios on HBO Max and told a very cold truth: people are responsible for believing and sharing misinformation. Andrew Bosworth, like it or not, is absolutely right.

These past two years with COVID and the rise of far-right extremism have proven how far people will go to justify their atrocities. Just because something has no basis in reality doesn’t mean it won’t be widely believed, or shared. In fact, the more nonsensical the ideal, the greater the odds of the going viral (Remember when JFK was literally supposed to come back from the dead?)

Pride factors into the spread of misinformation as well. Like it or not, agree with it or not, major portions of America feel left out in the cold. Whatever they share doesn’t have to be right or even make sense. The point is, a lot of people are willing to listen and even act on the information. That’s all that matters. That’s how we got the January 6th insurrection.

While people have made it a toxic platform, government regulation of Facebook/Meta may not be the answer. Unfortunately, the solution may be beyond what we’re willing to do.

We must be willing to listen without waiting to talk. We must admit that no one has all the answers, but maybe a lot of us have some of them. And most importantly, a lot of us have to be willing to admit we were wrong.

Thanks for reading.

Avery K. Tingle is a scifi/fantasy author currently residing in the Las Vegas area. Owned by two cats, he is passionate about social justice, Star Wars, and mental health. Connect to his award-winning writing and social media here.