SAN FRANCISCO — The digital world as we know it would be vastly different without the pervasive presence of the Like button. This humble thumbs-up icon, popularized by Facebook, has grown beyond its initial role as a simple feature, morphing into a phenomenon that internet services have integrated as an essential tool for engagement.
The Like button has sparked creativity, delivered doses of dopamine to users worldwide, and even served as an emotional gauge. It became an iconic fixture outside Facebook’s Silicon Valley headquarters until the company rebranded as Meta Platforms in 2021. This transformation and the fascinating origins of the button are thoroughly explored in a new book titled “Like: The Button That Changed The World.”
The book traces the concept of the Like button back through history, even drawing parallels to the Roman gladiator battles where a thumbs-up or thumbs-down dictated a warrior’s fate. Fast forward to the early 21st century, and tech innovators — including pioneers from companies like Yelp and Twitter — were toying with ways to incentivize online content creation. Among these innovators was Yelp’s Bob Goodson, who sketched a thumbs-up and thumbs-down to express opinions on restaurant reviews. Though Yelp didn’t adopt Goodson’s designs, his idea inspired further exploration.
“There’s a sophisticated simplicity to the Like button,” says Martin Reeves, co-author of the book. “It conveys, ‘I like you, I like your content. I am part of your tribe.’ Yet pinpointing its inventor is complex.” Though Facebook cemented the button’s ubiquity, it didn’t originate the concept and nearly dismissed it altogether. The button’s inclusion on Facebook only came after CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s initial resistance was overcome in 2009, five years after Facebook’s inception in a Harvard dorm.
The Like button, born out of necessity, slowly gained traction. It embodied an idea that had brewed in Silicon Valley for over a decade before Facebook adopted it. Reeves emphasizes the collaborative culture of the Valley, saying, “Innovation is often social, and everyone was talking about similar ideas.”
Hollywood helped bring the notion to the forefront of popular culture. The Oscar-winning film “Gladiator” memorably showcased the gesture through Emperor Commodus’s theatrics, while earlier, television character Fonzie from “Happy Days” had made thumbs-up gestures a symbol of cool. This gesture was reflected in technologies like TiVO’s remote control and Hot or Not’s feedback mechanisms, building the foundation for the Like button.
Facebook’s eventual embrace of the button was pivotal. Although Zuckerberg initially opposed the notion due to concerns about clutter, competing social network FriendFeed adopted its own version in 2007. However, FriendFeed’s Like button wasn’t sustainable enough to prevent Facebook from later acquiring the service, leading Facebook to introduce its own Like button after an internal debate over naming it “Awesome.”
Once the Like button went live, Facebook realized it wasn’t just a tool for social engagement but also a valuable asset for data analysis, aiding in targeted advertising. In 2016, Facebook expanded by introducing reactions like “love,” “care,” and more, broadening users’ ability to express themselves. While the financial boon was significant, the book’s research argues that the Like button’s deeper value lies in how it resonates with fundamental human behavior.
Despite all the advantages, the Like button has unleashed unintended emotional consequences, particularly affecting younger users who feel left out if their posts don’t garner attention. Reeves acknowledges the unpredictability of technological innovations’ side effects: “If you can’t predict the benefits precisely, how do you forecast the negatives?”
In spite of its controversies, the Like button has connected with a deeply rooted human instinct for connection and affirmation, an impulse cultivated over thousands of years of evolution. “Serendipity was part of the innovation’s beauty,” Reeves concludes, suggesting that our craving for connection remains insatiable.