I am seeing more and more people taking videos of themselves and sharing online. I don't know if they do it out of boredom, craving for attention, or because they want to become influencers, etc. It's definitely easier to get attention by putting yourself out there, especially for women, but isn't also dangerous? Another question is what kind of attention you attract. I don't know if people are just blissfully unaware, or if they are even thinking long-term, do they realize that all the videos they shared will be on the internet forever? Whatever silly things they did or said, their kids could see it, the kids' classmates could see it, their grandkids could also see it, etc.
One thing I'm concerned about is what happens if young girls or boys think this is the norm because it seems like everyone is doing it and want to be "famous" online instead of learning something that actually provides value to society? How do stackers with kids think about this? I like the internet, but I would also like my future kid to stay away from it until they know what they are doing, focus on learning, writing, reading, and languages at a young age, and master useful hand skills instead of doom-scrolling videos. Attention spans are really getting destroyed by all these short-form videos, and somehow they make you feel anxious and like you're failing at life or something. I'd get a headache if I kept watching those videos for 20 mins. 😅
Also, there will always be someone younger and prettier, like another batch of upcoming influencers and AI-created profiles are out there too. There are already so many people doing all kinds of plastic surgery or nose jobs or skin treatments, or doing whatever to stay young. I actually had a discussion with some friends the other day, they told me they don't care what heels women wear or what their nails look like. It was quite interesting to hear, I also don't find these ugly long nails or sausage lips attractive. I don't know if the ones who got it done are being sold a lie, or if they genuinely think that's beauty. Outside beauty will eventually fade, but social media seems to be built on exploiting people's insecurities or desires.
Another weird thing is that big change or growth usually require being solitude for a long time, at least that's my experience, so I don't get all the videos saying how much they had change or learned while still being active online, it sounds quite performing; For example, I can't making new posts every few days, because I simply need the time to have related experience and the time to think, other than dealing with all the small things in life. It usually a good sign when I am quite for a loooooong time, then I would come back to share whatever I've discover and learned. I remember social media used to be this way, now it's kinda forcing you to keep up with the content because of the algorithm. I don't even know if genuine connection on the internet is still possible in times like this, everything seems performative and superficial. However, I did meet wonderful people on the internet before, but now I only meet people offline, and it's all by chance.
I was thinking about it last night: how will all this end? Current social media all seems quite toxic to me, especially for women. I have no idea where people who prefer spending time reading and writing, sharing their experiences or thoughts are anymore; it used to be on Twitter, but it's also full of AI junk there now. SN is probably my fav place to learn and share ideas at the moment, there aren't many places that let you focus on sharing without worrying about follower count or likes, and stackers really take their time to reply! I guess I'm trying to say I appreciate what's being built here. Yes, it's not perfect, and it's full of bots or some people trying to milk sats, but at least it's different.
In the early days of social media, I used to email writers whose work I enjoyed; later, I even met some in person, and some became friends.
I miss those times! Everything was so much simpler.
I recently had the opportunity to see survey results where Zoomers were asked something to the effect of, what quality do you think is most important for young people to leaern/develop in their education? To my surprise, "confidence" was an overwhelming response.
I couldn't help but feel like social media plays into this response. Where are we going if confidence precede competence?
You might say they are growing up into a different world where one's ability to market themselves online has become increasingly important, and aren't I just an unc weilding his irrelevant keyboard, bemoaning the loss of a world I once knew.
Fwiw my answer would have been curiosity, because that is the spring from where knowledge and wisdom drink. But what do I know really? They will probably grow uo and realize that inner beauty is timeless, and nose-jobs and butt-fillers all fade with time (or is it that they actually don't but everything surrounding them does?) In any case, truth can be cruel bitch to those who try to deny it.
Confidence is such a weird answer, having too much confidence but nothing to back it up, that's what I call marketers, lacking deep down so they need to be loud about it. 😂
I agree with the curiosity! it leads you to discover all the interesting things along the way and keeps one young too, from the inside:)
If all there is is
fake it, and there is almost nevermake it, then confidence is pretty much all you need, I think.indeed. 😂
Life on social media is so fake; they try to sell you a version of normality that doesn't exist. One thing I can't stand is videos where people film themselves crying. Why do they record themselves while they cry?
It's fake indeed, because real life is full of small tasks, from cooking, doing the dishes, cleaning, and throwing rubbish, yet few ever share them; Not every day is about traveling or having a party.
Filming crying is insane too, what if your own parents see it? Why not talk to friends? Sharing such a vulnerable side online is scary.
I think having no friends and feeling lonely can make you do that
I can see potentially sharing videos of yourself crying or being emotional if they're sort of off the cuff videos
But if it's done with professional lighting and sound that takes a lot of setup..... that just seems weird and inauthentic to me.
Other videos I find pathetic are the ones where people fake having fun or fake love. I’m not sure if I’m explaining myself clearly, but this happens a lot with families and couples who want to appear to have a perfect relationship, when in reality, it’s just for the photos and videos.
Totally. Momfluencers are possibly the scariest. Forcing their kids to take picture perfect photos for social media, living life just for the camera.
I struggle just to take a photo with my daughter that stays only in my gallery; I can't imagine the battles I’d have to fight to get her to film videos constantly every day, about everything she does where everything has to be perfect because I want thousands of people to see them. Those children have absolutely no privacy; it’s shameful for half the world to know your most intimate and vulnerable moments.
I feel sorry for the kids, too young to say no. it almost feels like abuse, imagine when the kids grow up and realize how much his or her childhood moments were shared online without consent.
Yes, I think we can all agree on that. Inauthentic, disingenuous people ruin everything.
I don't have TikTok; that app makes me uncomfortable. I still have an old Instagram account that I check occasionally to look at pages for certain shops and restaurants, as well as two local news accounts for the state where I live to stay updated sometimes that’s where I find out if a highway is closed. I don't follow any "influencers" because, honestly, I find their videos ridiculous.
I can't stand TikTok, seeing all the people talking about some guys selling things on the street or random guys peacocking kills me inside.
Idk if TikTok is exposing how stupid most people are, or making them stupid?
The frustrating thing is that those are the videos that go viral; there is idiotic content on every platform, yet if you look closely, you can also find valuable material on all of them. For instance, I wanted to learn embroidery but didn't know anyone or any place where I could take lessons, so I turned to the internet to watch sewing and embroidery videos. Thanks to a woman who posted Instagram videos featuring recipes adapted for children under two, I was able to find tasty, healthy options for my daughter which was a huge help, since she used to be a real challenge when it came to eating.
The sad part is that the ones who actually share good info, how long will they keep sharing it, since more attention goes to those silly videos? I found many amazing old blogs, but most haven't been updated for a while.
There are still amazing ppl out there sharing great information, but then because of the feedback mechanism: silly content gets more clicks, so more ppl will produce them.
But is it fake when it influences behavior and social organization so deeply?
I really hate what society is becoming, but feel powerless to stop it.
We must accept and change only our own lives avoiding what we dislike and raising our children as we see fit by instilling the best values while accepting that they are independent beings who will make their own decisions, and trying to prepare them for an environment we do not like.
Short videos are like crack! Good thing I’m not addicted to that shit. I still watch long videos.
Me neither. The scrolling thing is weird, maybe some content is funny and useful, but in the end I couldn't remember anything, and it gives me a headache.
My observation of current social media as a meme:
I dunno, don't think it's a bubble man. They do these silly videos because millions of people out there are pacified by them, which is useful to advertisers and politicians.
Sounds like a bubble to me: there is a specific audience, and there are "performers" for that audience.
Would you say it’s different on SN? Isn’t there also a specific audience here, and some are “performing” for that audience? Do you think stackers are immune from audience capture?
I think what I mean is that the audience, the demand for brainless content to pacify your feelings with, is universal and not a bubble, thus the influencer trend is not a bubble
Same with SN... SN will be around as long as there's demand for the type of content that gets put here. In that sense, SN's fate is heavily tied to the popularity of bitcoin.
If that wasn't clear, I mean the social phenomenon of bubbles, not economic bubbles
oh, that changes it entirely
i see what you mean now
yes, SN is a bubble... haha... probably one of the weirdest ones of all
We don’t put any pictures of our family online, aside from direct messages with family. Even then, I prefer to keep it very limited.
My daughter likes making videos, though. I’m not sure at what point we’ll be comfortable letting her post them online.
What would you do if your daughter started to post herself online, different part of her life.
At some point, you have to trust them to make their own decisions and be resilient to the mistakes they make.
She’ll receive a large dose of caution from us, which is ultimately all we can do.
I can't imagine how those parents feel when they find out that their daughter is on OF; it might be an extreme example, but full of bad influences these days.
That’s one industry we should all be glad to see AI takeover.
I strongly agree with this. Thought and meditation used to mean spending years on a problem. Now if someone has spent two hours thinking on a problem (not frantically iterating on it with their llm), just quietly thinking on the problem -- it sounds like a great feat and clear evidence that they are a super serious person. Announcing to the world that you spent a year on a problem sounds like you were obviously doing something wrong, incapable of using llms, or not very bright.
Now that we have llm's, it seems that working in solitude (in which I include refraining from reading or typing or chatting) is almost a failure. The modern denizen of social media says: time alone without your devices, just spent in contemplation is time wasted.
In addition to being a source of growth, I would say that solitude can be a major source of originality. And I'm very worried that our almost constant drip feed of inputs -- from other people, notifications, llm responses, social media, and all the content the world has ever created being available to us immediately -- is going to starve us of the solitude we require to actually come up with new ideas.
Unfortunately, I doubt we will change this trend. The people who produce ill-considered products and outputs every 10 minutes and yell about it on social media are the ones who will dominate the discourse.
how will all this end?
eventually people are going to find out about SN and realize this platform pays better than other ones...
someone posted a question about this the other day. how to scale and still maintain the same quality. i personally think it will all be ok. fiat social media will die and people will move to bitcoin social media, which is SN. by the time that happens, the culture here should already be set by its early users.
Yeah, social media definitely makes it harder to find that kind of quiet space to think..
What you’re saying is quite interesting; many of us feel the same way or share similar views but don't dare discuss this topic on social media—though we do talk about it among friends, and the debate is usually excellent. All that content those YouTubers post is fake; they only care about their audience and monetization. We need to set time limits for kids' internet use, encourage them to socialize more with peers their own age, and get them involved in hands-on activities so they can learn and stay motivated. It’s a tough task, but not impossible.
A video of someone videoing a young man on the beach setting up his camera to video himself, then said young man starts to do a silly dance for the camera...
And the caption says 'Men used to go to war!'