Ah, February 4, 2004. A day for the history books! The day Mark Zuckerberg, in his infinite, world-changing genius, launched TheFacebook. A college project! Just a way for Harvard students to connect! Yeah, that’s how all global domination stories begin—bright-eyed kids with a dream. Fast forward two decades, and this thing isn’t just a website anymore. Oh no. It’s a juggernaut. It’s a cultural phenomenon. It’s the digital town square, the internet’s front porch… except the porch is on fire, the neighbors are shouting conspiracy theories, and someone stole your data while you were grabbing coffee.
Let’s talk about the scandals—because, oh boy, Facebook has more baggage than an airport carousel during the holidays. Remember the Cambridge Analytica debacle in 2018? Millions of people had their data slurped up and weaponized to manipulate elections. Manipulate elections! But no, no, Mark Zuckerberg said they didn’t mean for that to happen. It was all a big misunderstanding! Like when your dog eats your homework, or when a massive social media company accidentally enables the undermining of democracy. Happens to the best of us, right?
And let’s not forget their role in the misinformation Olympics! Gold medalists, every single time. COVID-19 hits, and suddenly Facebook becomes the go-to source for your uncle’s half-baked science theories. Vaccines turn into mind-control juice, the virus is a hoax, and 5G towers are… I don’t know, turning frogs into lizard people? Even Zuckerberg admitted they got a little… pressured… by the government to censor some content. But later, he was like, “Actually, maybe we overstepped.” Oh, you think, Mark? You think?
But wait, there’s more! Recently, Meta—because they needed a new name to distract us from their problems—decided they’re just going to stop fact-checking some stuff altogether. Yep. No more rules. Free speech for all! Translation: “We’re too tired to deal with your nonsense, so have at it, internet. Spread your garbage far and wide!” Because if there’s one thing the world needs right now, it’s more unchecked nonsense flying around the web like confetti at a circus.
And the hits keep coming! Over in Australia, some politician got fined for using Facebook to post political ads without disclosing who he was. Because transparency is overrated, right? Meanwhile, Facebook just shrugs. “Not our problem, mate!” They’re like the digital landlords who refuse to fix the leaky roof but still raise the rent.
So here we are. Twenty years of Facebook, and what do we have? A platform that can’t decide if it’s a beacon of free speech, a guardian of truth, or just the world’s biggest dumpster fire. They’ve got so much influence they could change the world for the better—if they could only stop tripping over their own feet long enough to figure out how.
But hey, happy anniversary, Facebook! Here’s to another 20 years of chaos, confusion, and maybe—just maybe—a shred of accountability.
