Most people agree that Social Media is broken and that we need to find new solutions. Max DeMarco embarked on a journey to find out more about a new invention called NOSTR. This is his documentary about that journey and his interview with key players.
I’ve actually been on Nostr myself a few months (and did my own video about it). As with most alternative networks, you see who you put in your feed.
Watch at https://youtu.be/aA-jiiepOrE
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Most people agree that Social Media is broken and that we need to find new solutions
Solutions for what? Algorithmically driven “content”, made by people who don’t care about the material they’re churning out, as long as it gets them in front of eyeballs and lines their pockets?
The problem with social media, tech, and most of our other ills in society, is capitalism. Greed. MegaCorpX isn’t building a social platform so that you can have a community. They’re doing it to make money. You’re just a cog in that machine for them, but they make YOU feel like you can be the star of it, and exploit you in the process. Along with it you create parasocial relationships that make literally no one happy, a fertile platform for mobs and harassment, constant self image issues, FOMO, doomscrolling, etc. etc. Not to mention giving a platform to bigots, white supremacists, nazis, etc., and feeding those ideologies, all while pretending like you have to let them be there because of “free speech” or “town square/public commons/whatev”
Social media is a MASSIVE net negative, and the answer shouldn’t be “how do we make new ones after the old ones collapse?”, but rather “how to we move on from the idea that social media is necessary, and just let it die?”
Why would we? Do we actually need it? I feel like it has done more damage to society than actually being useful…
My own anthropological pet theory.
Dunbar’s number is the concept that a person can only have so many meaningful relationships. Another way of thinking about it is that we, as a species, feel most comfortable in tribes with a certain number of people.
Which makes sense. I hated, hated the little rednecky town that I grew up in. But when I moved to a larger city, the first few weeks were spent overcoming the loneliness of not knowing everybody around me.
What massive online social media does is essentially short circuit the behavior that we developed when we began urbanizing.
Now a person can be a member of twenty tribes without ever needing to leave their homes. If we are, in fact, only capable of a finite number of close friendships then every close relationship that you have online is energy that won’t be spent on a physical one.
True story: I left Facebook in 2016. I had been miserable but didn’t even think to relate the two. About a month after I jumped ship I got adopted by a group of fellow nerds nearing midlife. We hang out at least twice per week. Pub trivia, bowling, hiking. Those interactions are so much more meaningful than anything you can get on social media. By our nature, humans crave physical company.
Social media isn’t going to “break” us. But, if nothing changes, it will further dramatically alter society.
Why would we? Do we actually need it? I feel like it has more cons than pros…
I’ve actually answered this more than once already. Someone did ask what does it actually solve and is new, and I listed a few things it tries to address differently. I’ve listed those as pro’s, but you did not specify the con’s that you know of it?
I’m glad you asked, where do I start? Facebook + Cambridge Analytica => Brexit. Mass manipulation. Giving every idiot a megaphone to spit out idiot ideas. Even worse, give them a place to meet other idiots with the same idiot ideas. Cyverbullying causing damage to the self image of teenagers everywhere. Instagram + pedo rings. Twitter is nothing than a palce for far right meet and greet, nowadays. Promoting every idiot who fancy themselves an influencer.
The only good thing it ever contributedwas when people organised protests during the Arab spring through social media. But now, the corporations are blocking access to their platforms at the behest of the governments.
Social media is F-ing garbage, let it die. I am however terrified of the next trend that will take its place…
I don’t entirely disagree with you about social media but like I’ve said it us the people who use social media that are mirroring their own personalities. It us not the tech itself. But my post was not about social media in general being perfect, it was about Nostr itself was trying to do to address some common shortcomings identified on existing social media networks. Nostr is not perfect either but it has some interesting and different ideas.
