After seven years at Snapchat, I finally learned the truth about why our most important apps seem destined to disappoint us
This is a pretty good article. I think the author dances around it a bit but gets it: it’s all about investors wanting infinite growth.
Think about it this way- if ad-supported social media isn’t profitable (which seems to be the case) and constantly requires VC cash to stay afloat, really the customers of the product are the investors. The cult of “line go up” demands that engagement be constantly increasing, which means that it’s effectively impossible nowadays to have a social media site focused on creating a vibrant active community. Community equals steady traffic and engagement once it hits its stable point. That’s just not good enough.
It really explains why every site is trying their hardest to become TikTok- short, relatively cheap to host video clips that press the dopamine button and get users addicted to the service. Add an endless feed to keep users hooked, and you have a recipe for maximum engagement. It’s the best bang for the Buck from an investor perspective.
And the fact the author dances around an idea is why I hate reading articles online or watching YouTube videos. They need to drag the content as much as possible to maximize profit. In a 10 minute video they can push more ads, the same way that in a 10 paragraph article they can push more ads in between paragraphs or on the sides.
I think this quality of content problem vs monetization isn’t exclusive to social media.
Watching this… transition (really wish it was a death) of Web 2.0 or whatever we call the 10’s era of internet is really interesting. I disengaged from everything Social Media aside from a highly curated reddit feed (RIP BaconReader) about 7 or so years ago and it was a huge change in my mental health. I know, I know, still a social platform, but, c’mon, cut out the frontpage and just build good metas and the communities were great
Since then I’ve had moments where I’m advocating others do the same, at the detriment of sounding like a madman on occasion, just for their own sanity and space to think and breath through a situation.
Anyways, here I am on a new social media platform celebrating the death of forced engagement and yet, Lemmy feels like the web I grew up on. The BBSes and forums.
The author brings up a lot of great points and they seem pretty salient. I just am left wondering what it looks like now that the bills are due.
Can we get back to individual websites? Can I have a few dope blogs I hit up a few times a week? Can we resurrect stumbleupon? I hope so.
The jaded feeling I get every time I see a family member or friend or even stranger becomes radicalized by blatant falsehoods they find while “doing some research” is painful. This isn’t the web I know and it’s certainly not the one we need.
