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Facebook considers 'dislike' option, but it's not what you were hoping for

Zuckerberg said Thursday that Facebook was thinking about adding a “dislike” button. (Business Insider)
Zuckerberg said Thursday that Facebook was thinking about adding a “dislike” button. (Business Insider)

It's long been the request of Facebook users, and now, it looks like they could soon be getting their wish: Mark Zuckerberg is considering options that essentially give users the ability to 'dislike' posts on the site.

At a  public question-and-answer session in California on Thursday, the Facebook CEO was asked if the company would ever consider rolling out a 'dislike' button for posts. Zuckerberg said it's a problem they've wrestled with in the past, Venturebeat reports, as they acknowledge not all posts merit a 'like' in support; if a Facebook friend posts sad news, for example, and friends want to offer a simple show of support, a 'like' seems inappropriate, but commenting brings in the more complex issue of saying the right thing.

But Zuckerberg elaborated that while it's been considered, he doesn't think it would have a very positive effect on the community, or the world in general.

"The like button is valuable because it’s a quick way to share a positive sentiment," Zuckerberg said. "Some people have asked for a dislike button so they can say something isn’t good, and we’re not going to do that. I don’t think that’s good for the community."

What Zuckerberg was quick to add, though, is that they are interested in exploring ways to express other emotions beyond 'like,' such as 'surprise.'

Recently, Facebook rolled out the feature to comment on posts with stickers in Canada, which does fill that need somewhat.

One of the biggest detractions for Facebook to introduce a 'dislike' button is the potential threat it poses to advertisers.

In conversation with the BBC, chief executive of ad firm Adludio Paul Coggins said that at the end of the day, Facebook's big concern still has to be its advertisers.

"They need to keep their advertisers happy. I would think it highly unlikely that they would come up with a button that says you can 'dislike'."

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