Should Facebook Manipulate Users?

[Commentary] The principle of informed consent in the age of social networking can’t be limited to individuals who are studied; the public has every right to be informed of otherwise undetectable commercial or political practices that are made possible by the results of research into high-tech manipulation, and to choose whether to give consent. My guess is that the public would choose to outlaw using our communication tools as conduits for secret, algorithmic manipulations of our emotions. Let us choose to live in a society of true hearts, not calculated ones.

[Lanier is an interdisciplinary scientist at Microsoft Research.]