The latest news revealed that Facebook has been secretively manipulating the news feed of over 700 000 users to scrutinize users’ emotional outcome with either heartbreaking or heartwarming posts. As a Facebook user who merely and routinely updates news feed for new stories and events, Facebook has certainly violated users’ privacy and the business’s own ethical practices. Even the thought of such an action terrifies me regardless of its initial purpose.

The results from the experiment concluded that “emotions expressed by others on Facebook influence our own emotions.” In other words, the experiment may have mildly or severely affected users’ moods –which could also be expressed as playing with other people’s emotions. Facebook has implied consents from users but that is only because agreeing to its policy was mandatory in opening a new Facebook account. Therefore, these kinds of experiments should not be allowed without the users’ formal consent. 

There are many possibilities for Facebook to investigate the experiment with its users. This video by The Science of Happiness carries a similar purpose as Facebook’s experiment but has clearly implemented a more appropriate procedure in capturing and analyzing individuals’ moods and emotions.