New York (CNN Business) Facebook and Instagram are giving all users the option to hide public "likes" on their posts, potentially upending a core dynamic of the social media platforms where like counts are seen as a sign of a person's influence. The social media giant has since 2019 been testing the ability for users to hide like counts, a feature synonymous with Facebook, as a way to make Facebook and Instagram less stressful to use. how many people liked other users' posts, Facebook FB As of Wednesday, every user can now choose whether people can see the number of likes on his or her own post and also whether to seehow many people liked other users' posts,said in a blog post Wednesday. Facebook has been working to combat mounting criticisms that social media platforms can be harmful to the well-being of users and society . However, even with Wednesday's announcement, hiding likes on Facebook and Instagram will be optional rather than by default, making it unclear how many users will actually take this step.

Source: CNN May 26, 2021 17:37 UTC