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On Facebook you're bound to your friends/family/co-workers/etc, on Reddit you're bound to the shallowest lowest common denominator content (front page) or else

by gdulli 7y ago

On Facebook you're bound to your friends/family/co-workers/etc, on Reddit you're bound to the shallowest lowest common denominator content (front page) or else endless spam and self-promotion (sort by new.) Twitter is where you're meaningfully in control of who you follow and what you see. That means it's on you to curate that, and many won't want to do that. I was on Twitter for a while before I found the real niche and strategies that made it my favorite place. Once I got it, the curation became an activity that I enjoy, part of the loop, and it's rewarding when it's working well. If you're seeing fake news regularly it's because you want to see it. One key thing to do is avoid the algorithmic timeline, Twitter does force bullshit down your throat to maximize engagement metrics, but where is that not the norm anymore? My Twitter experience might crumble if I lose access to the app that removes ads and suggested content from the timeline and keeps it fully chronological.

wronglebowski 7y ago
I fully agree. Twitter is a platform where I can truly curate what I see and interact with in a meaningful fashion. On Reddit you can follow a community but then you’re bound by the quality of the community and it’s moderation. If on Twitter I want to follow an author I follow them. I engage with them. No additional noise or BS.
btown 7y ago
For what it's worth, Reddit becomes equally curatable to Twitter once you unfollow the default subreddits and join niche ones. There are multiple lines of defense that lend themselves to curation: niche subreddits have moderators who can remove off-topic posts; users are further disincentivized from making off-topic posts as they would run the risk of losing karma; subreddits tend to fracture into X/XMemes/XMetaDiscussion/XGifs/XVideo/SeriousX etc. so you can fine-tune what part of a topic you want; Reddit's "Custom Feeds" feature allows you to further separate your subscriptions into topic-specific buckets, allowing you to focus on one set of interests at a time. And the suggestion algorithm is both more rudimentary and just a jumping-off point to spend time on a specific subreddit you like. What Twitter does bring is the ability for one to say "this is a person I know or am familiar with; I can now trust what they say" - which Reddit eschews in favor of simple popularity. But since the "Hot" algorithm weights based on time-scaled popularity within each community, it's not quite as bad as one might think.
- nindalf 7y ago
  > For what it's worth, Reddit becomes equally curatable Any place is. The person you're replying to is convinced that Twitter is "the best" but any network where you invest can be really good. On facebook, I've gotten rid of people I don't like and now it's only people I admire + interesting articles. My reddit front page is great for me - programming subreddits interpolated with cute animal gifs. I use Instagram maybe twice a year but I'm sure if I invested into finding people I admired, it'd be worthwhile too. Ditto with HN - most comments are self assured pronouncements made with absolute confidence and minimal expertise. But once you start to recognise certain usernames, you're able to sift the wheat from the chaff easily. Twitter isn't "the best". Nor are any of the others. Each has it's niche.
rconti 7y ago
Counterpoint: My friends/family/co-workers are not trolls. Twitter is optimized for fake identities, and for virally spreading the most sensationalistic content.
- anthonypasq 7y ago
  yes, this if why you can choose who to follow...
  - rconti 7y ago
    I've tried to "curate" my experience many times over the years and it's never proven worth it. I'm settling on a conclusion that some folks care more about what those close to them "in life" share, and others are more interested in what "outsiders" share. Those outsiders may be renowned global experts in their field, or athletes, or vapid influencers, or anything in between. Regardless, I haven't been able to make it work.
- gdulli 7y ago
  > Counterpoint: My friends/family/co-workers are not trolls. Sure, mine are simply uninteresting and that's why Facebook isn't a viable place to get content. > Twitter is optimized for fake identities, and for virally spreading the most sensationalistic content. This is the common sentiment about Twitter spread by outsiders, but I don't understand it. As I said, it only has to be your Twitter experience if you situate yourself in those conditions. The difference with Twitter is that it's the best place to avoid that experience if you choose to put in effort. And if you don't put in effort, your experience anywhere is going to be chosen for you, and bad. If I wanted to get on Twitter and complain about Hillary or Trump all day then sure, I'm either going to be preaching to a bubble or fighting with trolls. But that's just one way to use Twitter, not the one I'm interested in, and I don't understand why it's become synonymous with the Twitter experience.
raxxorrax 7y ago
"Reddit you're bound to the shallowest lowest common denominator content" I feel the same with Twitter. Although it has very high quality content and more interesting people, I think the baseline is lower than on reddit. Reddit is topic instead of celebrity oriented which is far more enjoyable for me. But true, I wouldn't like to put in effort to curate anything.
dunnevens 7y ago
For many people, myself included, Facebook content is no longer bound to whoever you have on your friends list. Honestly, it's probably been a long time since it was. Instead, it's all about groups and pages that you've selected to follow. The vast majority of the content I see on FB daily is from my groups. It's enough of a firehose that family postings are largely drowned out. This feed is as curated as my Twitter and Reddit feeds are. This seems to be one of the last avenues FB has left for retaining younger users, who've rejected the friends & family part of it. Even FB knows this type of usage is their future as their Super Bowl ads concentrated on finding like-minded groups.

by gdulli 7y ago

wronglebowski 7y ago

I fully agree. Twitter is a platform where I can truly curate what I see and interact with in a meaningful fashion. On Reddit you can follow a community but then you’re bound by the quality of the community and it’s moderation. If on Twitter I want to follow an author I follow them. I engage with them. No additional noise or BS.

btown 7y ago

For what it's worth, Reddit becomes equally curatable to Twitter once you unfollow the default subreddits and join niche ones. There are multiple lines of defense that lend themselves to curation: niche subreddits have moderators who can remove off-topic posts; users are further disincentivized from making off-topic posts as they would run the risk of losing karma; subreddits tend to fracture into X/XMemes/XMetaDiscussion/XGifs/XVideo/SeriousX etc. so you can fine-tune what part of a topic you want; Reddit's "Custom Feeds" feature allows you to further separate your subscriptions into topic-specific buckets, allowing you to focus on one set of interests at a time. And the suggestion algorithm is both more rudimentary and just a jumping-off point to spend time on a specific subreddit you like. What Twitter does bring is the ability for one to say "this is a person I know or am familiar with; I can now trust what they say" - which Reddit eschews in favor of simple popularity. But since the "Hot" algorithm weights based on time-scaled popularity within each community, it's not quite as bad as one might think.

nindalf 7y ago
> For what it's worth, Reddit becomes equally curatable Any place is. The person you're replying to is convinced that Twitter is "the best" but any network where you invest can be really good. On facebook, I've gotten rid of people I don't like and now it's only people I admire + interesting articles. My reddit front page is great for me - programming subreddits interpolated with cute animal gifs. I use Instagram maybe twice a year but I'm sure if I invested into finding people I admired, it'd be worthwhile too. Ditto with HN - most comments are self assured pronouncements made with absolute confidence and minimal expertise. But once you start to recognise certain usernames, you're able to sift the wheat from the chaff easily. Twitter isn't "the best". Nor are any of the others. Each has it's niche.

rconti 7y ago

Counterpoint: My friends/family/co-workers are not trolls. Twitter is optimized for fake identities, and for virally spreading the most sensationalistic content.

anthonypasq 7y ago
yes, this if why you can choose who to follow...
- rconti 7y ago
  I've tried to "curate" my experience many times over the years and it's never proven worth it. I'm settling on a conclusion that some folks care more about what those close to them "in life" share, and others are more interested in what "outsiders" share. Those outsiders may be renowned global experts in their field, or athletes, or vapid influencers, or anything in between. Regardless, I haven't been able to make it work.
gdulli 7y ago
> Counterpoint: My friends/family/co-workers are not trolls. Sure, mine are simply uninteresting and that's why Facebook isn't a viable place to get content. > Twitter is optimized for fake identities, and for virally spreading the most sensationalistic content. This is the common sentiment about Twitter spread by outsiders, but I don't understand it. As I said, it only has to be your Twitter experience if you situate yourself in those conditions. The difference with Twitter is that it's the best place to avoid that experience if you choose to put in effort. And if you don't put in effort, your experience anywhere is going to be chosen for you, and bad. If I wanted to get on Twitter and complain about Hillary or Trump all day then sure, I'm either going to be preaching to a bubble or fighting with trolls. But that's just one way to use Twitter, not the one I'm interested in, and I don't understand why it's become synonymous with the Twitter experience.

raxxorrax 7y ago

"Reddit you're bound to the shallowest lowest common denominator content" I feel the same with Twitter. Although it has very high quality content and more interesting people, I think the baseline is lower than on reddit. Reddit is topic instead of celebrity oriented which is far more enjoyable for me. But true, I wouldn't like to put in effort to curate anything.

dunnevens 7y ago

For many people, myself included, Facebook content is no longer bound to whoever you have on your friends list. Honestly, it's probably been a long time since it was. Instead, it's all about groups and pages that you've selected to follow. The vast majority of the content I see on FB daily is from my groups. It's enough of a firehose that family postings are largely drowned out. This feed is as curated as my Twitter and Reddit feeds are. This seems to be one of the last avenues FB has left for retaining younger users, who've rejected the friends & family part of it. Even FB knows this type of usage is their future as their Super Bowl ads concentrated on finding like-minded groups.