Facebook’s Graph Search Could Make Us Closer . . . Or Creeped Out

Facebook’s Graph Search has the potential to be the best way ever to meet friends and lovers online. It also could be creepy and pigeonholing. Welcome to the uncanny valley of search. Yesterday, Facebook announced a new feature called Graph Search. It’s like Google search, if Google were focused entirely within your friends’ interests. Rather than search for single women in Chicago--which would inevitably lead to the slop trough of dating sites and probably some pornography on Google--I could search “friends of friends” who are single on Facebook. I could even search “friends of friends who are women and like Miller Light.” The specificity is remarkable, meaning its results could be superbly relevant. The intent is clear: To keep people on Facebook longer, and tap an ocean of search money.It’s a strategic shift for Facebook. The inten...