I knew from pretty early on that the early form of the internet was probably doomed. The early, decentralized, "freedom" internet had a sort of ideology. And, that ideology was naive and flawed--it was obvious that it did not have what it took to stand up to the monetizers. The whole "the internet interprets censorship (and various other forms of control) as damage and routes around it" was a sweet idea, but lazy. People thought the internet protocols themselves would somehow insulate everyone from politics and big money, without anyone having to actually do anything about it. Which tacitly assumed that nobody had any ability or motivation to break that. This was a mistaken idea, Napster showed us that, and was kind of the starting gun for the closure of the internet "frontier".
The problem with the early internet is it was based around atomized individualist libertarianism, and the only way for it to have had a hope in hell would have been to be based around solidarity. If there is to be any chance of taking it back, it will require learning that lesson.
COM (cynical old man) here. I find myself having very similar experience and similar thoughts. And to your point of saying something someone else has said or done, I’m working on a piece where I’ve come to the realization that I’m turning into George Costanza. I will be paid nothing for it but me and a few people will get a laugh out of it.
I can relate. In fact, the very first post I made on Substack was about how I miss the Internet.
Most of what we get these days is "content" as opposed to anything of actual value. And "Dead Internet theory" postulates that this content is mostly created by and consumed by bots (and I am increasingly inclined to believe it).
But I think the shitification process started to manifest earlier than Web 2.0. I believe it started when early millennials displaced GenX as the cultural definers of "cool".
This was the cohort that instead of mocking all things marketing, embraced the concept of "being your own brand". This has of course snowballed since. And as such the current "cool" generation (GenZ) is not only comfortable with the thought of being a brand ambassador, it's ALL they want to be.
Interesting points. Hadn't really thought about it like that, like it's full generational shifts. A big difference is that we (Millennials) didn't grow up with this crazy, addicitve system built around us. GenX did to an extent, so they would have started to shift with it, and GenZ was fully birthed into it. I don't blame them for that. But it's certainly led to a different outlook on it, and how to live with it, and what they want out of it (clout).
It’s funny - I used to love interacting with kids not too long ago when social media was still in its infancy and hadn’t taken over the world.
Now, I dread being around tweens and teens, despite being pretty young myself, because of the poisonous effect the internet has had on them. What’s happening to our society?!?!
The other day, I was thinking that the entire internet consists of content and commentary from the “peanut gallery” 😂 it was a phrase my uncle used to use, not sure if you’re familiar with it where you are in the world. The phrase itself is dated, and im old enough to understand it, old but not THAT old and so happy to have had a childhood where we played outside 🌳🌞
Loved this. I recently thought about this too; how all my drafts are practically rants about how awful life is and how the internet has changed for the worse. Being an upbeat person doesn't come natural to me, but I sure am going to try, because you are right: this place can only get better if we stop being so pessimistic all the time.
I’m with ya. It’s funny thinking that if smart phones and social media were around in the beatnik era, you could expect to see poets and songwriters finishing their sets with, “please like, subscribe, follow, and donate…” on their various social channels.
It’s certainly not a “cool” move when a creator consistently attempts to directly and indirectly monetize their work, yet everyone who creates, ultimately wants to get paid for their work. It’s a predicament for sure.
Best I can tell for now, it’s better to secure income elsewhere so you can create free from the pressure of ever asking your audience for money.
Having a product out there for purchase that people can easily buy anytime + not having to ask people to buy it + knowing your rent or mortgage will be paid either way = is a thing of beauty.
Let’s not forget who’s behind the culture shift - greedy tech bro alpha nerds who copied and pasted the casino format and replaced chips with “time on site” metrics to sell to advertisers.
All of us doing anything online leads to a never ending cycle of doing more things online, forever and ever amen.
I remember in like 1995 riding my BMX around and looking forward to getting online to chat with my friends on mIRC. The internet wasn’t a destination yet, it was still just this tool to connect and make plans for offline things (like printing Yahoo maps to get to shows).
The post you link to by Julia Alexander is interesting - about why people are posting less. I've been interested for a while in why people don't engage, and it's exactly this shift from connection to entertainment - and the feeling of powerlessness the stems from the growth of social networks (which is what the platforms want). It's fascinating that there is more activity in DMs than there is on people's timelines. People want connection. I have made numerous "friends" through the Internet that I'll almost certainly never meet in person, for they're in far flung countries. That's the lovely thing about it. But that sort of meaningful connection doesn't bring in revenue. As a creator, I want to find a way of making those types of "internetty" friends, to form relationships that don't feel exploitative. X, Instagram and Facebook, with their algorithmically driven feeds, have made that extremely difficult, if not impossible. Maybe Substack will be different. Lol.
Yup, Facebook is testament to that - it's early days did help form genuine connection, groups, communities and helped people stay in touch. A product that delivered on it's promise, until it was sucked into the 'growth at all costs' vortex, and the shareholders wanted to see earnings increase every quarter from here on out, and they soon discovered connections made little money. Enter monetized engagement, and, as it transpired, the slow death of social media as anything useful or meaningful.
This very much reflects my own thoughts on the state of the world (I am the ripe old age of 45). I recently quit all social media but Substack and I feel like I am now seeing it from the outside, the brain rot and addiction is everywhere.
Not far behind you. Deleted everything off Twitter bar a couple of sports lists. Have been off Facebook for years, and never had Instagram or TikTok. LinkedIn profile is gathering dust. Got Substack (for now), but sense it'll go the same way eventually.
Standing in solidarity with post! I don't know how old ur nieces are but what worries me
even more is the stats I've been seeing where most young teens thinking they have an audience of teens are actually being watched by older men. I grew up with stranger danger only for these platforms to now be filled with the the point of attracting views from strangers
i don't mind being a dinosaur and you are not alone!!
Yeah, when you look too close at what's going on, it sure makes you feel yucky. And it's surely only going to get worse (think headsets, virtual worlds etc.)
Right there with you man. But a small defence of people selling a product or service: yes there are tons of grifters and vacuous hype merchants, but others are genuinely trying to make a living by solving real problems and don't want to be burned out or gaslit by corporate employment anymore, and that requires self promotion and brand building. If only we could filter out all the snakeoil and have ways of establishing what is legit and worthwhile. Wading through all the detritus is no fun for anyone.
I knew from pretty early on that the early form of the internet was probably doomed. The early, decentralized, "freedom" internet had a sort of ideology. And, that ideology was naive and flawed--it was obvious that it did not have what it took to stand up to the monetizers. The whole "the internet interprets censorship (and various other forms of control) as damage and routes around it" was a sweet idea, but lazy. People thought the internet protocols themselves would somehow insulate everyone from politics and big money, without anyone having to actually do anything about it. Which tacitly assumed that nobody had any ability or motivation to break that. This was a mistaken idea, Napster showed us that, and was kind of the starting gun for the closure of the internet "frontier".
The problem with the early internet is it was based around atomized individualist libertarianism, and the only way for it to have had a hope in hell would have been to be based around solidarity. If there is to be any chance of taking it back, it will require learning that lesson.
Agree 100%. It IS brain rot.
COM (cynical old man) here. I find myself having very similar experience and similar thoughts. And to your point of saying something someone else has said or done, I’m working on a piece where I’ve come to the realization that I’m turning into George Costanza. I will be paid nothing for it but me and a few people will get a laugh out of it.
A fellow COMmy! (Oh wait, that doesn't sound great).
Hey, at least in a sense, the post is an original idea.
Ha! That’s a good point!
I can relate. In fact, the very first post I made on Substack was about how I miss the Internet.
Most of what we get these days is "content" as opposed to anything of actual value. And "Dead Internet theory" postulates that this content is mostly created by and consumed by bots (and I am increasingly inclined to believe it).
But I think the shitification process started to manifest earlier than Web 2.0. I believe it started when early millennials displaced GenX as the cultural definers of "cool".
This was the cohort that instead of mocking all things marketing, embraced the concept of "being your own brand". This has of course snowballed since. And as such the current "cool" generation (GenZ) is not only comfortable with the thought of being a brand ambassador, it's ALL they want to be.
So of course they need "clout".
Interesting points. Hadn't really thought about it like that, like it's full generational shifts. A big difference is that we (Millennials) didn't grow up with this crazy, addicitve system built around us. GenX did to an extent, so they would have started to shift with it, and GenZ was fully birthed into it. I don't blame them for that. But it's certainly led to a different outlook on it, and how to live with it, and what they want out of it (clout).
It’s funny - I used to love interacting with kids not too long ago when social media was still in its infancy and hadn’t taken over the world.
Now, I dread being around tweens and teens, despite being pretty young myself, because of the poisonous effect the internet has had on them. What’s happening to our society?!?!
The other day, I was thinking that the entire internet consists of content and commentary from the “peanut gallery” 😂 it was a phrase my uncle used to use, not sure if you’re familiar with it where you are in the world. The phrase itself is dated, and im old enough to understand it, old but not THAT old and so happy to have had a childhood where we played outside 🌳🌞
You’re not-too-old and you’re very smart. And prescient.
Thanks Frederick!
Loved this. I recently thought about this too; how all my drafts are practically rants about how awful life is and how the internet has changed for the worse. Being an upbeat person doesn't come natural to me, but I sure am going to try, because you are right: this place can only get better if we stop being so pessimistic all the time.
Oh, I'm long passed being optimistic - couldn't you tell 😂
I’m with ya. It’s funny thinking that if smart phones and social media were around in the beatnik era, you could expect to see poets and songwriters finishing their sets with, “please like, subscribe, follow, and donate…” on their various social channels.
It’s certainly not a “cool” move when a creator consistently attempts to directly and indirectly monetize their work, yet everyone who creates, ultimately wants to get paid for their work. It’s a predicament for sure.
Best I can tell for now, it’s better to secure income elsewhere so you can create free from the pressure of ever asking your audience for money.
Having a product out there for purchase that people can easily buy anytime + not having to ask people to buy it + knowing your rent or mortgage will be paid either way = is a thing of beauty.
Yup, that's always my top advice to aspiring writers - don't make it your full time gig.
Let’s not forget who’s behind the culture shift - greedy tech bro alpha nerds who copied and pasted the casino format and replaced chips with “time on site” metrics to sell to advertisers.
All of us doing anything online leads to a never ending cycle of doing more things online, forever and ever amen.
I remember in like 1995 riding my BMX around and looking forward to getting online to chat with my friends on mIRC. The internet wasn’t a destination yet, it was still just this tool to connect and make plans for offline things (like printing Yahoo maps to get to shows).
Yeah. In those days it was a tool, it was fun, and it worked properly. I miss those days
The post you link to by Julia Alexander is interesting - about why people are posting less. I've been interested for a while in why people don't engage, and it's exactly this shift from connection to entertainment - and the feeling of powerlessness the stems from the growth of social networks (which is what the platforms want). It's fascinating that there is more activity in DMs than there is on people's timelines. People want connection. I have made numerous "friends" through the Internet that I'll almost certainly never meet in person, for they're in far flung countries. That's the lovely thing about it. But that sort of meaningful connection doesn't bring in revenue. As a creator, I want to find a way of making those types of "internetty" friends, to form relationships that don't feel exploitative. X, Instagram and Facebook, with their algorithmically driven feeds, have made that extremely difficult, if not impossible. Maybe Substack will be different. Lol.
Yup, Facebook is testament to that - it's early days did help form genuine connection, groups, communities and helped people stay in touch. A product that delivered on it's promise, until it was sucked into the 'growth at all costs' vortex, and the shareholders wanted to see earnings increase every quarter from here on out, and they soon discovered connections made little money. Enter monetized engagement, and, as it transpired, the slow death of social media as anything useful or meaningful.
This very much reflects my own thoughts on the state of the world (I am the ripe old age of 45). I recently quit all social media but Substack and I feel like I am now seeing it from the outside, the brain rot and addiction is everywhere.
Not far behind you. Deleted everything off Twitter bar a couple of sports lists. Have been off Facebook for years, and never had Instagram or TikTok. LinkedIn profile is gathering dust. Got Substack (for now), but sense it'll go the same way eventually.
What an ender to a great post.
It's almost like someone who is good at that kind of thing suggested it...
Standing in solidarity with post! I don't know how old ur nieces are but what worries me
even more is the stats I've been seeing where most young teens thinking they have an audience of teens are actually being watched by older men. I grew up with stranger danger only for these platforms to now be filled with the the point of attracting views from strangers
i don't mind being a dinosaur and you are not alone!!
I have five nieces, ranging from age 5-11.
Yeah, when you look too close at what's going on, it sure makes you feel yucky. And it's surely only going to get worse (think headsets, virtual worlds etc.)
We're not cynical – we're realists.
Right there with you man. But a small defence of people selling a product or service: yes there are tons of grifters and vacuous hype merchants, but others are genuinely trying to make a living by solving real problems and don't want to be burned out or gaslit by corporate employment anymore, and that requires self promotion and brand building. If only we could filter out all the snakeoil and have ways of establishing what is legit and worthwhile. Wading through all the detritus is no fun for anyone.