Commenting on Facebook on Techmeme - no thanks

I was a bit surprised last week to see TechCrunch, (probably the main technology blog) move over to using Facebook commenting (even more so that my Facebook profile popped up automatically, even though Facebook wasn't on my browser - lesson to me, you are being followed by Facebook unless you actively take measures). Ostensibly it is to "remove trolls". I suspected at the time that it little to do with trolls, and more to do with the (theoretical) benefit of access to the Facebook egosystem. This seems to be the view of Steve Cheney as well:

The carrot here for content sites is clear: even with a lower volume of comments, the potential viral effects and CTRs are something parent sites like AOL are surely extrapolating, based on their recent manifesto to boost reach, drive traffic, and maximize page views (though I'd argue they would perform much better on mainstream sites like HuffPo or TMZ than a niche vertical like TC, which your friends are less likely to be aware of).

I also agree with his second point. I suspect that for many people, Facebook is a "Friend and Family" system, not a work one, and that much of what they do in a work mode is not relevant or interesting to many of those friends. This opens up the whole issue of identity on Facebook - to my mind it's major systemic error (and where I suspect Next-Gen social networks will attack it) is the "one size fits all" social identity.

All the work we have ever done on people online (going back c 6 years) is that they (in the main - the early adopters are different) do prefer to show different facets of their identities to different social groups, and its not all about being secretive, its as much about being relevant and not boring (similarly, posting what you had for lunch on Twitter is dull to those who don't know you). Steve clearly thinks the same, when a TechCrunch comment is sent to your wall:

I'm not too worried about FB Comments in isolation, but the writing is on the wall: all of this off-site encroachment of the Facebook graph portends where FB is really going in pushing one identity. And a uniform identity defies us. Face it, authenticity goes way down when people know their 700 friends, grandma, and 5 ex-girlfriends are tuning in each time they post something on the web.

I think this is true about authenticity obscuring the truth as well - on the posts I replied to on TechCrunch trolling was seldom a problem - in fact often the real truth came out in those anonymous comments, and that was part of the real value of TechCrunch, you were in effect getting the "don't tell anyone I told you, but...". I think what we are seeing here is the "dumbing down" of the commenting system, and I wonder if its more about commerce than anything else, as I can't see that its in the interest of the readers (advertisers don't like feisty blogs, and timing - post AOL acquisition, given we know what their aims are - is interesting).

I also have e deeper distrust with Facebook, in that you are never quite sure what they will do with your information in future, but on present form they are usually not on the side of respecting your privacy. Quite simply, I don't trust them, and that trust lack is now transferred to TechCrunch. (You can also log on with a Yahoo account - I reckon Yahoo's probably had their best week ever for a while)

Incidentally, I see there is now a TechCrunch post on the topic, and the comments on it are:

(i) Back to the big numbers on this issue
(ii) I'd estimate 2:1 against, and the ones that are anti have more likes.
(iii) Less funny, and no more insightful than before

However, I thought this comment was particularly apt:

1. Techcrunch writing has become HEAVILY OPINIONATED by it's individual writers. So it's OK for you guys to say whatever and not expect negative comments from your community?
2. You guys are missing the boat - Techcrunch is about the COMMUNITY! If you alienate your community with an inefficient and slow comment system (FB) you will lose the community.
3. Garbage in equals garbage out. The writing has suffered greatly - especially the writing of Alexia - and the constant quora junk. Listen to your community - the trolls and negative comments are a direct result of bad writing.

In other words, one breeds one's own trolls. I also await with pleasure the aghast reaction of "authentic" TechCrunch commentors when the Yahoo using trolls' comments come up (and they will....) on their walls.