First reaction: only 76%? Second reaction: only Facebook?

Roughly three-quarters of adults believe Facebook is making American society worse, a new CNN poll conducted by SSRS finds, with about half saying they know somebody who was persuaded to believe in a conspiracy theory because of the site’s content.

Americans say, 76% to 11%, that Facebook makes society worse, not better, according to the survey. Another 13% say it has no effect either way. That broadly negative appraisal holds across gender, age and racial lines.

How many of those actually use Facebook? Er … almost all of them, it seems:

Even frequent Facebook users — those who report using the site at least several times a week — say 70% to 14% that the social network harms, rather than helps, US society. Although majorities across parties say Facebook is doing more harm than good, that feeling spikes among Republicans (82%).

I’m not sure that “spike” is the right word to use. Among the political demos in the crosstabs, that GOP response is the highest, but 70% of Democrats think it does more harm than good too, and it’s 76% among independents. The bigger “spike” is among college graduates, 83% of whom think Facebook is a malevolent platform compared to 72% among non-graduates. The most remarkable aspect of the demographic breakout isn’t a supposed “spike” but the consistent and overwhelming negative responses across all demos.

For instance, 35-49YOs make the most use of Facebook in the age demos by far (54% several times a day, with 18-34YOs next at 35%). And 77% of that demo think Facebook makes American society worse. To paraphrase The Reaper Rap in Bill and Ted’s Bogus Journey, you can be a king or a little street sweeper, economically speaking, but either way you think Facebook sucks (78% for >$50K earners, 72% <$50K). Among the political demos, fewer Republicans are power users, but not by much — their 32% isn’t that far off from Democrat’s 38% or indies’ 37%. When one includes leaners, it’s a 37/35 split, basically a tie. There’s a bigger gap between white and non-white respondent on how awful Facebook is, but 80/68 (respectively) still shows overwhelmingly negative assessments in both groups.

So how many of these demos have given up Facebook? Um. Across nearly ever demo, a majority of respondents use Facebook at least once a day. The largest plurality in every demo except seniors is for those who use it several times a day.

Do we want society to become worse?

CNN attempts to drill down for blame. That’s evenly split between the users and the platform itself:

Among the majority overall who think Facebook is worsening society, however, there’s less of an overwhelming consensus on whether or not the platform itself is primarily to blame: 55% say that the way some people use Facebook is more at fault, with 45% saying it’s more due to the way Facebook itself is run.

Overall, about one-third of the public — including 44% of Republicans and 27% of Democrats — say both that Facebook is making American society worse and that Facebook itself is more at fault than its users.

This is a foolish argument. If the platform itself didn’t exist, then the users wouldn’t have the opportunity for malevolence. It’s not one or other, but the combination of the two that makes society worse. And it doesn’t just apply to Facebook, as Charles Barkley points out in this clip (via Outkick):

"I'm anti social media."

Chuck tells KD why he hates being online

Watch the interview tonight at 7pm ET on @NBAonTNTpic.twitter.com/PcjRrFGRun

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) November 9, 2021

NBA legend and current TNT analyst Charles Barkley said he has no use for Twitter, Instagram or any other social media app, as they often lead to nothing but trouble for athletes, both former and present.

“First of all, I understand there’s built-in animosity toward anybody who’s successful,” Barkley said in an interview with Nets star Kevin Durant. “When you’re a celebrity, people can say anything they want to you, but what you say to them can get you in trouble.” …

“I’m an old-school Alabama dude,” Barkley said. “If somebody says something to me, I have to respond.”

“I enjoy engaging with the fans,” Durant responded. “I used to take it personally. There was a point that I felt like people were trying to personally attack me through my social media …”

Barkley then interjected, “That’s probably because they are.”

They are, they are.

So why do these platforms have such staying power even with horrendous evaluation from their own consumers? It’s tough to walk away from the “someone is wrong on the Internet” phenomenon, for one thing. This also might also be a dynamic akin to congressional job approval — voters routinely think Congress stinks but support their own local representative. In this case, the users are supporting their own use of Facebook but think the institution stinks on ice. Or maybe it’s simply just so much of a habit that users are too addicted to quit.

This seems like an untenable position long-term for Facebook, however. No wonder they’re regurgitating Second Life as Meta. They need an escape from Facebook just as much as the rest of us do.