Facebook researchers: how do you get a list of users who like a page?
Hi all, I am researching NPOs that use Facebook, and I'm trying to compile a network of users who like individual NPO FB pages. I have tried to get a list of users who like the NPO FB pages using two importers (NodeXL and netvizz), but these tools only download user-post networks and do not provide a list of all users who like the page (at least I didn't see that option). I recently read that Facebook restricts this option in the API due to privacy concerns<http://stackoverflow.com/questions/3546320/how-to-list-facebook-users-who-like-a-page-or-interest>, and I noticed that the "like" class in FQL<http://developers.facebook.com/docs/reference/fql/like>only returns lists for objects like posts, photos, etc. Does anyone have a tool or method for using the API to get this data? Thanks! Andrew -- Andrew J. Roback Ph.D. Candidate in Technical Communication Illinois Institute of Technology http://andrewroback.com
Andrew, If you know how to query the Facebook API you can pull the names and userids of all users whose profile you can view with your access token who have liked any public post. You access the data by appending "/likes" to any FB graph object id that can be liked (photos, comments, wall posts, etc.) and paging through the results until there are none left. Here's an example: https://graph.facebook.com/10150146071831729/likes?limit=100 (100 is the max N of results FB returns in a single API call and allows you to pull results faster). Note that in nearly all cases, you will pull fewer names than the total N of likes the API lists--this is due to some users having privacy settings that prevent outsiders from viewing their likes. Best, ~DEEN On 3/3/2013 6:24 PM, Andrew Roback wrote:
Hi all,
I am researching NPOs that use Facebook, and I'm trying to compile a network of users who like individual NPO FB pages. I have tried to get a list of users who like the NPO FB pages using two importers (NodeXL and netvizz), but these tools only download user-post networks and do not provide a list of all users who like the page (at least I didn't see that option).
I recently read that Facebook restricts this option in the API due to privacy concerns<http://stackoverflow.com/questions/3546320/how-to-list-facebook-users-who-like-a-page-or-interest>, and I noticed that the "like" class in FQL<http://developers.facebook.com/docs/reference/fql/like>only returns lists for objects like posts, photos, etc.
Does anyone have a tool or method for using the API to get this data?
Thanks!
Andrew
-- Deen Freelon, Ph.D. Assistant Professor American University School of Communication Office: Asbury 228A dfreelon@gmail.com http://dfreelon.org
I am really curious if you asked the question SHOULD I access a list of users who like a certain page. If even Facebook views the privacy of their users and the pages that they like on Facebook as private, perhaps you should consider your own research ethics. Membership lists typically receive certain protections under the law--especially in the EU and UK. While "likes" of a certain page are not necessarily construed as membership lists, it would set a fascinating legal precedent for someone to try them as such. -- Angela Newell, Ph.D. University of Texas at Austin LBJ School of Public Affairs amnewell@utexas.edu On Sun, Mar 3, 2013 at 5:24 PM, Andrew Roback <andrew.roback@gmail.com>wrote:
Hi all,
I am researching NPOs that use Facebook, and I'm trying to compile a network of users who like individual NPO FB pages. I have tried to get a list of users who like the NPO FB pages using two importers (NodeXL and netvizz), but these tools only download user-post networks and do not provide a list of all users who like the page (at least I didn't see that option).
I recently read that Facebook restricts this option in the API due to privacy concerns< http://stackoverflow.com/questions/3546320/how-to-list-facebook-users-who-li...
, and I noticed that the "like" class in FQL<http://developers.facebook.com/docs/reference/fql/like>only returns lists for objects like posts, photos, etc.
Does anyone have a tool or method for using the API to get this data?
Thanks!
Andrew
-- Andrew J. Roback Ph.D. Candidate in Technical Communication Illinois Institute of Technology http://andrewroback.com _______________________________________________ The Air-L@listserv.aoir.org mailing list is provided by the Association of Internet Researchers http://aoir.org Subscribe, change options or unsubscribe at: http://listserv.aoir.org/listinfo.cgi/air-l-aoir.org
Join the Association of Internet Researchers: http://www.aoir.org/
<amnewell@utexas.edu>
Not to disagree necessarily, but I wouldn't allow Facebook's privacy (or data access) policies to dictate research ethics either... On 04/03/2013, at 9:56, "Angela Newell" <amnewell@utexas.edu> wrote:
I am really curious if you asked the question SHOULD I access a list of users who like a certain page. If even Facebook views the privacy of their users and the pages that they like on Facebook as private, perhaps you should consider your own research ethics. Membership lists typically receive certain protections under the law--especially in the EU and UK. While "likes" of a certain page are not necessarily construed as membership lists, it would set a fascinating legal precedent for someone to try them as such.
-- Angela Newell, Ph.D. University of Texas at Austin LBJ School of Public Affairs amnewell@utexas.edu
On Sun, Mar 3, 2013 at 5:24 PM, Andrew Roback <andrew.roback@gmail.com>wrote:
Hi all,
I am researching NPOs that use Facebook, and I'm trying to compile a network of users who like individual NPO FB pages. I have tried to get a list of users who like the NPO FB pages using two importers (NodeXL and netvizz), but these tools only download user-post networks and do not provide a list of all users who like the page (at least I didn't see that option).
I recently read that Facebook restricts this option in the API due to privacy concerns< http://stackoverflow.com/questions/3546320/how-to-list-facebook-users-who-li...
, and I noticed that the "like" class in FQL<http://developers.facebook.com/docs/reference/fql/like>only returns lists for objects like posts, photos, etc.
Does anyone have a tool or method for using the API to get this data?
Thanks!
Andrew
-- Andrew J. Roback Ph.D. Candidate in Technical Communication Illinois Institute of Technology http://andrewroback.com _______________________________________________ The Air-L@listserv.aoir.org mailing list is provided by the Association of Internet Researchers http://aoir.org Subscribe, change options or unsubscribe at: http://listserv.aoir.org/listinfo.cgi/air-l-aoir.org
Join the Association of Internet Researchers: http://www.aoir.org/
<amnewell@utexas.edu> _______________________________________________ The Air-L@listserv.aoir.org mailing list is provided by the Association of Internet Researchers http://aoir.org Subscribe, change options or unsubscribe at: http://listserv.aoir.org/listinfo.cgi/air-l-aoir.org
Join the Association of Internet Researchers: http://www.aoir.org/
Deen: Thanks for the tip. This still seems to be pulling likes from objects rather than page likes (i.e. people who have clicked the like button on the page). It may just be that this information is not provided through the API. Angela: I have considered the privacy issues extensively, and I decided (in accordance with my IRB approved study) that if this particular information is publicly accessible through the API, then it is appropriate for inclusion in my research study. That being said, if the information can't be obtained using the official API, it's not something I personally am interested in. As a novice to Facebook data collection, I was asking this as a technical question to verify that I wasn't missing a way to get this through the API, not "how do I get this information at any cost?" Perhaps I should have stated that more clearly in my initial question. Thanks for raising the point about different conceptions of privacy. I'm aware of the differences between EU/UK and US privacy considerations. If we go by the AoIR ethics working group report<http://aoir.org/reports/ethics.pdf>, the risk to users who control their own privacy settings and what information is available through the API is minimal and no rights or expectations of privacy are violated. This would also conceive of the users from the position of agency rather than as subjects, as they control privacy settings and what information is available through the API (as Deen pointed out above). I personally think that line of reasoning meets the burden of deontological scrutiny, but I welcome debate on this issue. Finally, I'm not reconstructing a list of page likes from other data (if that was what you were implying) or using any kind of data manipulation to derive identities or personal information. All that being said, I don't necessarily think that information is "off limits" depending on the particular considerations of a study, but that's a different debate all together. I'd be happy to continue this discussion off list if you'd like to find out more about my study and how I plan to use/report the data. Jean: I agree completely. In my opinion, just because Facebook says user information is "private" doesn't mean it's compromising or poses a risk for harm. That's what the IRB process determines. On Mon, Mar 4, 2013 at 9:34 AM, Jean Burgess <je.burgess@qut.edu.au> wrote:
Not to disagree necessarily, but I wouldn't allow Facebook's privacy (or data access) policies to dictate research ethics either...
On 04/03/2013, at 9:56, "Angela Newell" <amnewell@utexas.edu> wrote:
I am really curious if you asked the question SHOULD I access a list of users who like a certain page. If even Facebook views the privacy of their users and the pages that they like on Facebook as private, perhaps you should consider your own research ethics. Membership lists typically receive certain protections under the law--especially in the EU and UK. While "likes" of a certain page are not necessarily construed as membership lists, it would set a fascinating legal precedent for someone to try them as such.
-- Angela Newell, Ph.D. University of Texas at Austin LBJ School of Public Affairs amnewell@utexas.edu
On Sun, Mar 3, 2013 at 5:24 PM, Andrew Roback <andrew.roback@gmail.com wrote:
Hi all,
I am researching NPOs that use Facebook, and I'm trying to compile a network of users who like individual NPO FB pages. I have tried to get a list of users who like the NPO FB pages using two importers (NodeXL and netvizz), but these tools only download user-post networks and do not provide a list of all users who like the page (at least I didn't see that option).
I recently read that Facebook restricts this option in the API due to privacy concerns<
http://stackoverflow.com/questions/3546320/how-to-list-facebook-users-who-li...
, and I noticed that the "like" class in FQL<http://developers.facebook.com/docs/reference/fql/like>only returns lists for objects like posts, photos, etc.
Does anyone have a tool or method for using the API to get this data?
Thanks!
Andrew
-- Andrew J. Roback Ph.D. Candidate in Technical Communication Illinois Institute of Technology http://andrewroback.com _______________________________________________ The Air-L@listserv.aoir.org mailing list is provided by the Association of Internet Researchers http://aoir.org Subscribe, change options or unsubscribe at: http://listserv.aoir.org/listinfo.cgi/air-l-aoir.org
Join the Association of Internet Researchers: http://www.aoir.org/
<amnewell@utexas.edu> _______________________________________________ The Air-L@listserv.aoir.org mailing list is provided by the Association of Internet Researchers http://aoir.org Subscribe, change options or unsubscribe at: http://listserv.aoir.org/listinfo.cgi/air-l-aoir.org
Join the Association of Internet Researchers: http://www.aoir.org/
-- Andrew J. Roback Ph.D. Candidate in Technical Communication Illinois Institute of Technology http://andrewroback.com
Hmm, it looks like you can pull usernames and IDs of likers for FB objects other than pages (e.g. statuses, photos, etc.). But unless I'm missing something in the documentation, it looks like all it offers for pages is the total N of likes. Weird. ~DEEN On 3/4/2013 4:41 PM, Andrew Roback wrote:
Deen: Thanks for the tip. This still seems to be pulling likes from objects rather than page likes (i.e. people who have clicked the like button on the page). It may just be that this information is not provided through the API.
Angela: I have considered the privacy issues extensively, and I decided (in accordance with my IRB approved study) that if this particular information is publicly accessible through the API, then it is appropriate for inclusion in my research study. That being said, if the information can't be obtained using the official API, it's not something I personally am interested in. As a novice to Facebook data collection, I was asking this as a technical question to verify that I wasn't missing a way to get this through the API, not "how do I get this information at any cost?" Perhaps I should have stated that more clearly in my initial question.
Thanks for raising the point about different conceptions of privacy. I'm aware of the differences between EU/UK and US privacy considerations. If we go by the AoIR ethics working group report <http://aoir.org/reports/ethics.pdf>, the risk to users who control their own privacy settings and what information is available through the API is minimal and no rights or expectations of privacy are violated. This would also conceive of the users from the position of agency rather than as subjects, as they control privacy settings and what information is available through the API (as Deen pointed out above). I personally think that line of reasoning meets the burden of deontological scrutiny, but I welcome debate on this issue.
Finally, I'm not reconstructing a list of page likes from other data (if that was what you were implying) or using any kind of data manipulation to derive identities or personal information. All that being said, I don't necessarily think that information is "off limits" depending on the particular considerations of a study, but that's a different debate all together. I'd be happy to continue this discussion off list if you'd like to find out more about my study and how I plan to use/report the data.
Jean: I agree completely. In my opinion, just because Facebook says user information is "private" doesn't mean it's compromising or poses a risk for harm. That's what the IRB process determines.
On Mon, Mar 4, 2013 at 9:34 AM, Jean Burgess <je.burgess@qut.edu.au <mailto:je.burgess@qut.edu.au>> wrote:
Not to disagree necessarily, but I wouldn't allow Facebook's privacy (or data access) policies to dictate research ethics either...
On 04/03/2013, at 9:56, "Angela Newell" <amnewell@utexas.edu <mailto:amnewell@utexas.edu>> wrote:
> I am really curious if you asked the question SHOULD I access a list of > users who like a certain page. If even Facebook views the privacy of their > users and the pages that they like on Facebook as private, perhaps you > should consider your own research ethics. Membership lists typically > receive certain protections under the law--especially in the EU and UK. > While "likes" of a certain page are not necessarily construed as membership > lists, it would set a fascinating legal precedent for someone to try them > as such. > > -- > Angela Newell, Ph.D. > University of Texas at Austin > LBJ School of Public Affairs > amnewell@utexas.edu <mailto:amnewell@utexas.edu> > > On Sun, Mar 3, 2013 at 5:24 PM, Andrew Roback <andrew.roback@gmail.com <mailto:andrew.roback@gmail.com>>wrote: > >> Hi all, >> >> I am researching NPOs that use Facebook, and I'm trying to compile a >> network of users who like individual NPO FB pages. I have tried to get a >> list of users who like the NPO FB pages using two importers (NodeXL and >> netvizz), but these tools only download user-post networks and do not >> provide a list of all users who like the page (at least I didn't see that >> option). >> >> I recently read that Facebook restricts this option in the API due to >> privacy concerns< >> http://stackoverflow.com/questions/3546320/how-to-list-facebook-users-who-li... >>> , >> and I noticed that the "like" class in >> FQL<http://developers.facebook.com/docs/reference/fql/like>only >> returns lists for objects like posts, photos, etc. >> >> Does anyone have a tool or method for using the API to get this data? >> >> Thanks! >> >> Andrew >> >> -- >> Andrew J. Roback >> Ph.D. Candidate in Technical Communication >> Illinois Institute of Technology >> http://andrewroback.com >> _______________________________________________ >> The Air-L@listserv.aoir.org <mailto:Air-L@listserv.aoir.org> mailing list >> is provided by the Association of Internet Researchers http://aoir.org >> Subscribe, change options or unsubscribe at: >> http://listserv.aoir.org/listinfo.cgi/air-l-aoir.org >> >> Join the Association of Internet Researchers: >> http://www.aoir.org/ > > > > > <amnewell@utexas.edu <mailto:amnewell@utexas.edu>> > _______________________________________________ > The Air-L@listserv.aoir.org <mailto:Air-L@listserv.aoir.org> mailing list > is provided by the Association of Internet Researchers http://aoir.org > Subscribe, change options or unsubscribe at: http://listserv.aoir.org/listinfo.cgi/air-l-aoir.org > > Join the Association of Internet Researchers: > http://www.aoir.org/
-- Andrew J. Roback Ph.D. Candidate in Technical Communication Illinois Institute of Technology http://andrewroback.com
-- Deen Freelon, Ph.D. Assistant Professor American University School of Communication Office: Asbury 228A dfreelon@gmail.com http://dfreelon.org
participants (4)
-
Andrew Roback -
Angela Newell -
Deen Freelon -
Jean Burgess