Platform reward structures incentivize negative and divisive content over constructive content

Evidence

Social media seems to offer perverse incentives by rewarding negative engagement. In fact, according to the New York Times, in 2020, internal research from Facebook revealed that posts which users rated as ‘bad for the world’ generated more engagement. This aligns with our finding that negative and divisive content maximized engagement on two of the biggest social media platforms, Facebook and Twitter. — Sander van der Linden, Foolproof, 459

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the user’s broader reading on information overload and communicative pathologies; also extends the earlier point that bad-faith speech and division travel differently than good-faith content. — connects to: Platform incentive structure suppresses accuracy motives and amplifies identity motives — Sander van der Linden, Foolproof: Why Misinformation Infects…, 467; Platform monetization replaced artistic gatekeepers with view-maximizing incentives — W. David Marx, Blank Space: A Cultural History of the…, 289; Platform dominance replaced quality curation with post-hoc algorithmic payment for hits — W. David Marx, Blank Space: A Cultural History of the…, 519 (+4 more)
• QUESTION: Why exactly did negative content maximize engagement mechanically — is it algorithmic, or a human processing bias toward threat/negativity?

Broader Connections

• Platform incentive structure suppresses accuracy motives and amplifies identity motives #expands (0.95) — Sander van der Linden, Foolproof, 467
• Internet virality can reward despised content as strongly as admired content #corroborates (0.90) — W. David Marx, Blank Space, 294
• Platform monetization replaced artistic gatekeepers with view-maximizing incentives #expands (0.85) — W. David Marx, Blank Space, 289
• Platform dominance replaced quality curation with post-hoc algorithmic payment for hits #expands (0.85) — W. David Marx, Blank Space, 519
• View-based payouts reward creators who chase the broadest audience #expands (0.85) — W. David Marx, Blank Space, 289
• Social media design decisions prioritize profit over user benefit or democratic ideals #corroborates (0.80) — Alice E. Marwick, Status Update, 718