Social network (SixDegrees, Friendster, Facebook)
Red social (SixDegrees, Friendster, Facebook)
- Date
- 1997-2004 · confidence high
- Place
- Harvard, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States (Facebook); New York (SixDegrees, 1997)
- Credited to
- Andrew Weinreich (SixDegrees, 1997); Jonathan Abrams (Friendster, 2002); Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook, 2004)
- People
- 👤 Andrew Weinreich👤 Mark Zuckerberg1984–
- Field
- Communication
⚠️ Disputed: the sources disagree.
What it is
Platforms where users create profiles, connect with acquaintances and share content in an algorithmic feed. Facebook took the model to billions of people.
SixDegrees (1997) is considered the first social network; Facebook the one that defined the dominant model.
What it led to
- The attention economy and microtargeted advertising
- Political polarisation, misinformation and the Cambridge Analytica scandal
- Influencing as a profession and online activism (the Arab Spring)
Built on
- World Wide Web1989-1991
- forums and Usenet
- instant messaging
Made possible
- Cyworld and the mini-hompyc. 1999-2003
- Microblogging (Twitter)2006
- Algorithmic short-form video (Douyin/TikTok)2016
- micro-targeted advertising