Capping off a series of lawsuits filed against social media and tech giants, a man is now suing Facebook – for one dollar.
David Fagin, an AOL news contributing writer, was aghast when he was labeled a spammer and was blocked from sending friend requests earlier this year. Eventually he was notified that his account was in danger of being wiped out. Fagin then wrote an opinion piece for AOL, chronicling his humiliation and his unsuccessful attempts at resolving the problem.
The writer’s narrative eventually came to the conclusion that Facebook didn’t provide any legitimate support – phone, email nor live chat – in order to help him resolve the matter. This is a similar point made in the $500,000 Musta Fteja lawsuit against Facebook.
In a press release he recently put out regarding the lawsuit, Fagin says, “When you’re talking about arguably the biggest online presence the world has ever seen, one that’s currently worth more than Microsoft, and there’s no way to reach a live human being, that might be something for the FTC and/or congress to at least think about.”
David Fagin isn’t seeking restitution for the damages incurred for being branded a spammer, a label he calls “pretty much the equivalent of an online pickpocket or con artist”. The purpose for suing Facebook is the only way it seems to get their attention. He says he hopes to begin public debate over the issue.
Over at the All Facebook blog, Jackie Cohen thinks Fagin’s outrage is disingenuous and says, “Given the state of things at AOL News after the acquisition of Huffington Post, Fagin’s publicity stunt is brilliant if it helps ensure that he continues to get paid for his writing.”
Regardless of the light he’s cast in, whether a tiny speck sticking in a giant’s eye or fame-hungry charlatan, Fagin’s actions are definitely creating discussion.
