How Facebook’s algorithm is amplifying one party over all others
Summary
In the month leading up to Nepal's parliamentary elections, Facebook pages with millions of followers disproportionately promoted the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), overshadowing traditional parties. The content focused on emotional and personality-driven narratives, amplified by Facebook's algorithm favoring engagement and virality.
Key Points
- Facebook pages with a combined six million followers posted significantly more content about the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) than other parties before Nepal’s parliamentary elections.
- Analysis of 4,754 posts showed 54.1% of political content favored RSP, overshadowing Nepali Congress and UML combined.
- The content emphasized emotional and personality-driven narratives over policy discussions, reflecting Facebook's algorithm preference for engagement.
- Several pages shared AI-generated images and misinformation, raising concerns about political bias and manipulation on social media platforms.
