After years of saying it would never happen, popular demand has finally won out. Ladies and gentlemen. Prepare yourself for the Facebook dislike button.
In a Facebook Q&A session on Tuesday, Mark Zuckerberg announced that the billion dollar social networking site has “been working on it and are very close to shipping a test of it.”
I can't wait to witness the havoc that a #FacebookDislike button causes.
— Frase (@missscottfraser) September 16, 2015
When will you be able to dislike that person’s statuses who doesn’t realize how annoying and uninteresting they are? (We all have one.) That’s currently unclear, if it will happen at all is even murkier. Zuckerberg and his team are focusing on making the button more of an empathy button, so instead of liking that Grandma Carol died, there will now be a specific button to show support.
My question. Is this button even needed in the first place?
See more: Later, haters: new Facebook dislike button allows empathy
If (God forbid) my grandparent passed away today and I posted it on Facebook. My first thought when people start liking my status is not going to be “Ohmigod these people are happy for my grandparents death, what jerks.” It’s going to be “Thank you for all the support. Love you all.” It is very off-putting to say you “like” someone dying or children starving in Africa, but if the word “literally” can gain the dictionary definition of its complete opposite “figuratively,” it is possible to use the word “like” as a means of support.
The actual button has yet to be released, but if Facebook is going to create this so called “empathy” button, it needs to stay a tool to show support.
For the people who have the guts to actually use the dislike button on normal status, it will definitely be abused — in the realm of cyberbullying. Providing the dislike button is basically supplying the guns for the gunfight. Giving the dislike button free range access over Facebook will do nothing but insinuate drama and be a tool for cyberbullying.
Really don't think the dislike buttons on #Facebook are a good idea. It will beckon bullies & trolls more than anything! #facebookdislike
— Charlotte Sidwick (@charlottesid) September 16, 2015
The best way to combat this is to have everyone choose on whether they want people to “like” or “dislike” the status you just posted. You got a new puppy? Post a photo and select the “like” option. That puppy got hit by a car? Post a status about it and select “dislike” so it will feel more like your friends are there to support you. Being able to choose which button you want to be used will insure that the button will not be neglected and be used for what it’s there for.
It still is not very clear what form this new button will take. Beta tests were announced as “coming soon.” Though it isn’t really needed, a dislike button would be an okay addition to the social media experience, as long as it is a tool used to help, and not to hurt.
Reach the columnist at baileyvogt@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @VogtOut
Editor’s note: The opinions presented in this column are the author’s and do not imply any endorsement from The State Press or its editors.
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