Facebook has adopted #hashtags as used on other social media sites like Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr and Pinterest.
Facebook users will click hashtags to take them to feeds of what other people and pages have said about topics, allowing them to join larger conversations. Posts will not be universally visible; all hashtags will still be subject to individual privacy settings.
The hashtag system as popularised by Twitter categorises posts. A search of a specific hashtag reveals all (visible) posts in that category. For example, prefixing a word with the hash symbol (#) – for example, #Facebook – turns the word into a clickable link to find more posts about Facebook.
Hashtags have become popular on social media sites, with users creating online conversations surrounding events such as political debates, television shows, world news and sports.
In announcing the move, Justin Osofsky, Facebook’s director of platform partnerships and operations, noted that a recent episode of Game of Thrones generated more than 1.5 million mentions on Facebook alone. The 2013 Oscars generated 66.5 million posts, comments and likes during the event.
The new feature should be available now but Facebook will add features such as trending hashtags and other insights to “help people discover more of the world’s conversations”. – Alana Scott
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