You may have seen this post about Facebook’s new algorithm that cuts down on the number of posts you see.
It says that Facebook will only allow you 26 friends and chooses who to show you. And that if you comment on a post, you’ll be more likely to see your friends. It also claims that Snopes has verified it as the truth. It’s exactly the opposite. Snopes has it pegged as a hoax.
But you know what? Snopes is not exactly right about that. While saying that Snopes said the method in the post would work is false, there is some truth in the post. Let me explain why. Facebook does not show you all the posts from everyone you friend or every page you like in your feed. They use a formula to determine what’s worth your time heavily weighted by how often you interact with posts by that person or page. So, if you want to see more posts from that person or page, you do need to comment or like or share those posts. (Sharing applies more to pages, as many people won’t allow their private posts to be shared beyond friends.) But just liking or commenting on one post won’t keep that going. You must continually like or comment on the posts of people and pages that you want to see. Copying and pasting that statement isn’t going to do much. You’re better off to head over to a friend’s page and like or comment on some posts. You will probably You will probably immediately notice that they pop up in your feed more.
As to the number of friends Facebook will show you, no they don’t limit it to just 26. But they do limit the number of see-first Friends and pages that you can select. If you choose a friend or a page as see first, you’re much more likely to see posts from them. And you are indeed limited to selecting a total of30 friends or pages for the see-first category.
Here’s how to make sure you see the people and pages you prefer first:
Click that little drop-down arrow button at the top of your feed and select Settings & Privacy from the drop-down menu.
Then choose Newsfeed preferences.
Select Manage Favorites.
Then choose up to 30 pages or people to see first.
Go through and click on the people and pages you want to see first.
You can click the arrow by All to sort by Friends, Pages, or the people you already see first.
When you’re done selecting, click on People you see first to make sure all of your favorites are included. Pay particular attention to make sure that my pages are listed. (Just kidding, follow what you want.)
This should help you see what you want to see. But make sure to like and comment on posts from people and pages you wish to keep seeing. Under Facebook’s new algorithm, your interactions with posts will be what counts the most.