Every so often, a friend of mine shares something offensive that I no longer want to see on my Facebook News Feed. I don’t want to remove them as a friend. (Actually, in the 9 years I’ve been on Facebook, I’ve never removed someone from my friends list.)
To me, unfriending seems too harsh. Plus, it feels permanent. I’ve always found it odd that someone would unfriend me on Facebook but then interact with me in real life. Why remove me from your friends list if we’re still friends?
Luckily, Facebook has implemented an “unfollow” option. On the spectrum of eliminating people from your News Feed, unfollowing is the least drastic, followed by unfriending, and the more severe blocking.
Unfollowing allows you to stop a friend’s posts from showing up on your News Feed without having to remove them as a friend. This allows them to still check out your vacation photos or newborn videos, and it allows you to still invite them to parties and get-togethers.
I should also mention that some people invest a lot emotionally into friends lists, and they may take it personally if unfriended. By unfollowing, you can also avoid misunderstandings and hurt feelings because they never receive an unfollow notification.
If you need to know how to unfollow someone, check out my tutorial on how to remove a friend’s Facebook posts without removing your friend.
What are your thoughts on unfollowing verses unfriending? Let me know in the comments below.
