Yahoo Finance Facebook changes name to Meta: Internet reacts
First it was ‘The Facebook’, then it was ‘Facebook’, and now the biggest social media company in the world is called ‘Meta’.
It’s a branding decision that followed days of speculation, with the move tied to CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s ambition to move Facebook into the metaverse.
Announcing @Meta — the Facebook company’s new name. Meta is helping to build the metaverse, a place where we’ll play and connect in 3D. Welcome to the next chapter of social connection. pic.twitter.com/ywSJPLsCoD
— Meta (@Meta) October 28, 2021
However, it’s also a name-change that comes as Facebook’s name is dragged through the mud.
In recent weeks, the Silicon Valley company has been attacked by whistleblowers who claim it knows that its products do social harm but chooses not to act.
According to the massive leak dubbed The Facebook Papers, the company is also facing mutiny from some parts of its workforce.
The Cambridge Analytica scandal, which revealed that Facebook had allowed companies to harvest its data for targeted political advertising, also hangs over the company’s head.
New legal action alleges Zuckerberg was personally involved in the scheme.
The timing of Facebook’s decision wasn’t lost on the denizens of the internet either, with the name change going viral within minutes.
Here’s what the internet thought.
Facebook changed its name to Meta because it’s self aware as hell
— Chris Redd (@Reddsaidit) October 28, 2021
“Facebook changed its name to Meta because it’s self aware as hell,” comedian Chris Redd said on Twitter.
Others were already unimpressed by the new Facebook company name.
“No Meta what you call Facebook it sucks,” writer Amil Niazi said.
No Meta what you call Facebook it sucks
— amil (@amil) October 28, 2021
Others chose to reminisce.
“Back in my day we called it Facebook, not Meta,” one person said.
Back in my day we called it Facebook, not Meta. pic.twitter.com/9rvv0yeTkn
— In My Mind (@MeAloneInMyMind) October 28, 2021
Others still questioned how well the name itself would stick.
“Facebook rebranding for no reason not a single soul gonna call it "Meta",” another Twitter user wrote.
Facebook rebranding for no reason not a single soul gonna call it "Meta" https://t.co/Z0wl3rkgE3
— cryptic incognito (@CrypticNoHoes) October 28, 2021
And even if the name stuck, would it work?
That’s what Twitter user Jack O’Connor pondered.
How to fix a company: simply change your name#Facebook #Meta pic.twitter.com/3fVL1vHeUR
— Jack O'Connor (@itsjackoconnor) October 28, 2021
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