Big Technology Podcast The Rise And Fall Of Facebook's Big Transparency Acquisition — With Brandon Silverman
Sep 21, 2022
Brandon Silverman, the founder of Crowdtangle and former Meta employee, spills the tea on the journey of his social media analytics tool. He reveals how Crowdtangle transformed from a trend tracker to a vital resource for exploring Facebook's political content. Silverman shares insights into the struggles for transparency within Meta, the evolution of news engagement strategies, and the shift of news from Facebook to TikTok. Now working on transparency legislation worldwide, he advocates for a more accountable social media landscape.
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Persistent Host
- Alex Kantrowitz has been trying to get Brandon Silverman on the show for months.
- Silverman delayed due to family reasons, but is a fan of Kantrowitz's work.
Crowdtangle's Pivot
- Crowdtangle started as a non-profit organizing tool leveraging Facebook's API.
- It pivoted to trend identification when that feature became unexpectedly popular.
Overperforming Metric
- Crowdtangle identified trending content by measuring "overperforming" engagement.
- This focus on relative performance helped surface content beyond just celebrity posts.