Facebook updated News Feed Algorithm to display more High Quality Content like News Articles

Facebook has updated the News Feed algorithm to include links to more "high-quality" content like news articles in place of meme photos that redirect users to different sites. The move is to provide more relevant information to its users. Social Networking leader carried out intensive research before incorporating more "high-quality" articles into the News Feed area instead of latest memes. With this integration, users will more frequently see links to articles about current events, sports or politics.

Facebook engineering manager Varun Kacholia and software engineer Minwen Ji wrote in a post on the company's Newsroom on Monday, 2 December 2013:

We've noticed that people enjoy seeing articles on Facebook, and so we're now paying closer attention to what makes for high quality content, and how often articles are clicked on from News Feed on mobile.

The change will particularly be visible on mbile phones, as the company brings trending news on the go. This will easily provide users the knowledge of what's going on around the world and in their friends circle. Decision to reduce memes shouldn't have significant effect on users, as most people show interest in news articles over photos.

Facebook is also driving user engagement as the new algorithm change will sometimes bring few stories on top of the News Feed section, whenever new comments are added. This allows the users to keep the conversation going on.

Facebook testing Trending Topics section in News Feed

Facebook is testing a Trending Topics section in its News Feed. The social network is checking new ways to make Hashtags useful. The section is similar to "Trends Box" of rival Twitter and showcases topics, including Hash-tags, currently popular on the site.

A spokeswoman from Facebook confirmed the test with The Wall Street Journal on Friday, 30 August 2013. She is quoted to have said the following in a WSJ Blog post about Trending:

"We are running a small test of a unit on News Feed that displays topics currently trending on Facebook. Right now it's only available to a small percentage of US users and it is still in the early stages of development. We will share more details down the line if we decide to roll it out more widely."

Facebook launched searchable Hashtags in June 2013, to make it easy for people to see related conversations around a single topic. At that time, the Social Networking company said it would be "rolling out a series of features that surface some of the interesting discussions people are having about public events, people, and topics". Earlier this month, it started showing trending topics to some mobile web users.

Trend based navigation is a natural outgrowth of adding Hashtags. Facebook is taking a while to go to the next phase. Public-private dynamics work quite differently on Facebook than on Twitter, where the hashtag / Trending Topics idea was popularized. Facebook is using tests to make sure this approach makes sense with its more private model. Let's see if Hashtag.org incorporates Facebook hashtags tracking in future.

Facebook introduced Searchable Hashtags, Assured more Features to Discover Public Conversations

Facebook has announced to introduce Searchable Hashtags from 12 June 2013. Clickable Hash tags will show a feed of what other people and Pages are saying about that event or topic. Facebook hash-tags will allow users to add context to a post or indicate that it is part of a larger discussion.

The newly offered feature is similar to other services like Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr, or Pinterest. Search Engine giant Google is also offering hash-tags support in its social service Google+ already. Facebook members were able to include hashtags in their content earlier, but there was no real functionality. The renowned Social Networking website has said it would be "rolling out a series of features that surface some of the interesting discussions people are having about public events, people, and topics".

Facebook explained the reasoning behind the addition of Functional Hashtags feature in its blog post as following:

Every day, hundreds of millions of people use Facebook to share their thoughts on big moments happening all around them. Whether it's talking about a favorite television show, cheering on a hometown sports team or engaging with friends during a breaking news event—people on Facebook connect with their friends about what’s taking place all over the world.

To bring these conversations more to the forefront, we will be rolling out a series of features that surface some of the interesting discussions people are having about public events, people, and topics. As a first step, we are beginning to roll out hashtags on Facebook.

Facebook users now can do following:

• Search for a specific hashtag from your search bar. For example, #NBAFinals
• Click on hashtags that originate on other services, such as Instagram
• Compose posts directly from the hashtag feed and search results

Privacy is a major concern in this new development. "Public Conversation" works differently on Facebook than it does on a service like Twitter, since many Facebook posts have some degree of privacy restriction. Facebook has assured that as always, members control the audience for their posts, including those with hash-tags. A company spokesperson has revealed that from a privacy perspective, hashtags will work similarly to Facebook Graph Search. In other words, users will only see the comments that they're authorized to see. So if you include a hashtag in a friends-only post, then my friends will still be the only ones who can see it in a hashtag search.

Introduction of Hash-tags is the first step by Facebook to help people more easily discover what others are saying about a specific topic and participate in public conversations. Social Media leader has committed to continue to offer more features in future, including trending hash tags and deeper insights, that help people discover and follow more of the world's conversations. Let's see if Hashtag.org tracks Facebook hashtags in future.