A Facebook executive responsible for the social media site's news feed is none too pleased with BuzzFeed, according to a report by AllThingsD.com.
Buzzfeed, a website responsible of pushing out viral content filled with lists and gifs, isn't what Chris Cox, the executive at Facebook in charge of News Feed, wants to see on his page.
"Cox especially has a problem with BuzzFeed and sites similar to it, according to multiple sources," AllThingsD.com reported.
The Facebook executive reportedly wants to see more "higher-quality" content on Facebook's news feed, but what generates a lot of clicks aren't necessarily the hard-hitting news stories.
"[People see] a sort of tabloidized version of Facebook, where 'junk-food stories with LOLcat art' do insanely well and show up more often, as one insider put it to me, while perhaps something like a more labor-intensive magazine feature - or even a decent news story - may surface less often in the feed," according to AllThingsD.com.
The problem Cox's alleged loathing for BuzzFeed could create is the site has received massive amounts of attention with more than 130 million unique visitors, according to Business Insider. However, an overwhelming amount of BuzzFeed's traffic comes from Facebook likes and shares.
"Facebook rolled out tweaks to its News Feed in third quarter of this year, Buzzfeed became even more dependent on Facebook. From August to October traffic to the Buzzfeed Network from the News Feed increased 69 percent," Business Insider reported.
With such a high volume of traffic, it's plausible for BuzzFeed to get a big offer and sell their company for millions.
"While the two companies have formed a strong partnership, Cox doesn't want Facebook to become BuzzFeed, overrun with its typically viral content," a source told AllThingsD.com.
Facebook executives also want to steer clear of becoming another popular social media site.
"Chris and Mark [Zuckerberg] absolutely do not want Facebook to be Tumblr," another source said.
