Meta is officially closing down CrowdTangle, its data analytics and transparency tool commonly used by journalists and researchers to study flow analytics on Facebook and Instagram.
The social media giant is reportedly replacing the analytics tool with its in-house Meta Content Library in compliance with the European Union's Digital Markets Act, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Journalists, Researchers Complain of Meta's New Transparency Tool
Although the Meta's own API tool offers the same global data and accessibility features as the old CrowdTangle, early testers noted several significant downgrades in the new Contest Library.
For once, the tool lacked a geography-based data review function and would not allow users to download data sets from public posts, Engadget reported.
As of writing, for-profit news outlets, except for select academics, are unable to access the less-reliable version of CrowdTangle. The analytics tool is set to officially close on Aug. 14.
CrowdTangle's shutdown comes in just several days after Facebook announced to close its News tab and cease all news licenses on the publishers on the platform.
Disinformation Continues to Ran Rampant in Meta's Platform
With many of its transparency features slowly deprecating, Meta's battle against disinformation is feared to be more challenging as the 2024 US Presidential Elections inch closer.
Several news outlets and digital experts have previously been scrutinized for being a breeding ground for political misinformation and disinformation all over the world, particularly in the past two presidential elections.
CrowdTangle is among the analytics tools many journalists used to expose the Cambridge Analytica controversy in 2016 where journalists are able to point out Facebook's algorithm favoring radical political content.
The same issues were spotted in the lead-up of the Jan. 6 Capitol Riot as 2020 Elections denialism flooded Meta's platforms.
With Meta still mostly relying on third-party independent fact-checkers to curb misinformation on its social media sites, the manpower may not be enough to handle the surge of "fake news" with the help of AI automation.
Even CrowdTangle's former CEO Brandon Silverman criticized Meta's decision of being "incredibly irresponsible" and instead advised journalists and researchers to apply for other data analytics tools vouched by platform transparency groups.
