‘If Facebook were a country it would be the 4th largest in the world’
How many times have you read that over the last year (with the figure adjusted accordingly).
Facebook isn’t a country, a country is a politically controlled geographical area (so Wikipedia tells me…realiable source?). What kind of government runs Facebook, what is this geographical region, does it have an anthem? ( [cheeky plug]).
I’m aware the statement is for effect, to make people realise how significant the site is, add to this the latest research that found are on Facebook and you start to appreciate the behemoth that the social network has become.
I’m just very weary of classifying a web site as a country, people then expect a consistent culture to exist, some form of pen portrait for a user. In reality the very fact the site is of such a significant size results in it being impossible to classify its users as much more than light, moderate and regular visitors. In terms of matching people from across the globe based on them having a Facebook login, I’m incredibly skeptical; there’s a reason ads are targeted on the basis of the personal information listed on each profile.
I’m now eagerly awaiting the claims that the internet is the largest continent, Oprah’s Twitter following is entering the World Cup and Jedi is now a more popular religion that Christianity.
