In defense of Facebook’s Your Year in Review

Posted by [email protected] | Dec 11, 2016 | Human Interest, Talker of the Town | 0 |

from Our Your Year in Review

A few days ago, I — and millions of other facebook users — received a short personalized, video:

We made a video for you to look back at some moments from 2016. From all of us at Facebook, we hope you enjoy it!

Our Your Year in Review

The video is cute and enjoyable.

So, I was surprised to see how supposedly unpopular are the (unsolicited) videos.

from 2016 Rochester Open a smash hit at the Robert B. Goergen Athletic Center. And the debut of ZOOM.

In An open letter to these horrible Facebook ‘Year in Review’ videos , Nicole Gallucci claims that everyone hates the videos. People don’t find the graphics cute or the music endearing. Gallucci suggests that facebook (randomly or deliberately) shows unflattering and embarrassing images and videos.

And, in This Year’s Scariest Movie: Your Facebook ‘Year in Review’ Video, Alyssa Newcomb presents testimonials from chagrined facebookers who positively cringed at the “highlights” of their year.

In Facebook released its annual year in review videos and they’re driving people crazy, Lauren Gilmore piles on with more horror stories from people who didn’t like facebook’s selections (and maybe not their own life!)

Au contraire. As far as Talker is concerned, we give facebook a ringing endorsement to whatever algorithm or magic used in selecting the year’s highlights.

from Rajesh’s FB page. One of our new friends.

First, facebook chose the badminton tournament. (see 2016 Rochester Open a smash hit at the Robert B. Goergen Athletic Center. And the debut of ZOOM.) Along with ZOOM, the tournament featured the play of Rajesh Barnabas and his wife and fellow writer, Erica Bryant.

The story was so successful it helped prompt what became THE moment of the year. As seen in Memories of presidential visits on Election Day in Brighton, Rajesh, former Green Party candidate for Monroe County Executive, voted Talker for Town Justice:

I just wrote you in for Town Justice… David Kramer Town Justice, has a nice ring to it…

Like I said, the highlight of the year.

from The electoral year in review. Getting Trumped

Then, FB chose The electoral year in review. Getting Trumped. For most readers, the series was enjoyable — right up to the last page.

from October 23rd and 24th, 1952 when Ike and Adlai were in town back to back. And School 29.

Finally, FB chose October 23rd and 24th, 1952 when Ike and Adlai were in town back to back. And School 29. The story was popular with the School 29 community who were glad to spread the word about Adlai Stevenson.

So, FB, don’t listen to Nicole, Allyssa, Lauren and their millions of griping and grousing followers. You did a great job!

About The Author

[email protected]

Welcome to Talker of the Town! My name is David Kramer. I have a Ph.D in English and teach at Keuka College. I am a former and still active Fellow at the Nazareth College Center for Public History and a Storyteller in Residence at the SmallMatters Institute. Over the years, I have taught at Monroe Community College, the Rochester Institute of Technology and St. John Fisher College. I have published numerous Guest Essays, Letters, Book Reviews and Opinion pieces in The New York Times, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, the Buffalo News, the Rochester Patriot, the Providence Journal, the Providence Business News, the Brown Alumni Magazine, the New London Day, the Boston Herald, the Messenger Post Newspapers, the Wedge, the Empty Closet, the CITY, Lake Affect Magazine and Brighton Connections. My poetry appears in The Criterion: An International Journal in English and Rundenalia and my academic writing in War, Literature and the Arts and Twentieth Century Literary Criticism. Starting in February 2013, I wrote for three Democratic and Chronicle blogs, "Make City Schools Better," "Unite Rochester," and the "Editorial Board." When my tenure at the D & C ended, I wanted to continue conversations first begun there. And start new ones. So we created this new space, Talker of the Town, where all are invited to join. I don’t like to say these posts are “mine.” Very few of them are the sole product of my sometimes overheated imagination. Instead, I call them partnerships and collaborations. Or as they say in education, “peer group work.” Talker of the Town might better be Talkers of the Town. The blog won’t thrive without your leads, text, pictures, ideas, facebook shares, tweets, comments and criticisms.