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Social media is what is making people anxious in the first place. Then they serve as the platform for the circular referencing "proof". Facebook & WhatsApp po

by dade_ 6y ago

Social media is what is making people anxious in the first place. Then they serve as the platform for the circular referencing "proof". Facebook & WhatsApp posts are supported by YouTube videos, are supported by tweets, are supported by more YouTube videos and then back to more Facebook. So some people I was visiting in a small town started going on about 'chemtrails' they learned about from someone on Facebook. These contrails control the weather, while dispensing chemicals that get into the ground water to control people's minds. They showed me a video on YouTube, it was polished bullshit if I ever saw it. Then there were more FB posts about people who "know the truth". It was hopeless, even with apps that showed the flight origin and destination of of the planes overhead for commercial cargo, passengers, etc. Apparently hundreds of international and domestic flights are all part of a conspiracy to make it cloudy and dispense chemicals to control the minds of this town. Further, the chemicals are clearly not working since they are even be able to have these thoughts. I blame social media. The real disaster is coming, this is just the second inning.

fzeroracer 6y ago
Social media as we know it is just further exposing the rot at the core of our thinking. Before the rise of Twitter and Facebook you had shock jockeys rule the radio world spreading conspiracy theories and what not. Social media has amplified those effects by allowing them to fester and indeed among many far right media sources you see them gleefully engage in such rhetoric as well (see: Seth Rich). Social media is part of the greater symptom which is that conspiratorial thinking has gained mass appeal.
- DevKoala 6y ago
  Those shock jockeys didn’t use your browsing history to determine exactly which conspiracies you will be most susceptible to. Denying the responsibility of YouTube, Facebook and other platforms that pursue viewer engagement at any cost by calling them a “symptom” of society is disingenuous and almost ill intended. “Hey the cancer that put you in bed is just a symptom of who you are.”
  - fzeroracer 6y ago
    Those shock jockeys engaged their viewers through taking calls, reaching out or otherwise. I'm not denying the responsibility of social media sites by abusing their algorithmic bullshit, but the fact of the matter is that the modern conspiracy theorist originated with the radio. That's where Alex Jones got his start among many others. If you don't know the history of how these things started, then all you'll do by removing Youtube, Facebook et al is treat one part of the cancer when it's metastasized to the rest of your body. It's ignorant. Sites like Infowars or Breitbart will rise from their ashes and we will have solved nothing.
    - DevKoala 6y ago
      Of course there are actors that downright pursue infecting the minds of people. However, the problem did not get out of control until the content platforms found those who were more susceptible to their message “at scale”.
  - dehrmann 6y ago
    Maybe it's semantics, but you're giving to much credit to recommendations. There's no intent that specific; all they really do is see that you liked X, and most people who liked X like Y, so it shows you Y. Politically, it causes echo chambers, it can show people all sorts of conspiracy theories, but my Youtube recommendations right now are showing me rollercoasters, airplanes, magic tricks, and cooking.
    - DevKoala 6y ago
      I understand that it is just sophisticated look alike targeting. Also, I don’t mean to say that the original intent of the designers is evil. However, the effects on viewers have to be analyzed, and most likely some changes are needed to stop people from falling into these echo chambers.
vezycash 6y ago
> Social media is what is making people anxious in the first place. What you're saying is ignorance is bliss. Without social media, a few phone calls to media houses would have been sufficient to squelch the recent murder of a black male by the police. The medium is not at fault. We all hailed Facebook helped organize 'successful' revolutions in some 'oppressive' states. It's easier to believe tales about people I distrust. I prefer we focused on ways to increase transparency and fairness in government. That's the conspiracy theory vaccine we need.
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
- dade_ 6y ago
  No, what I am saying is that social media is actually causing mental health issues including anxiety. If anxiety us at the root of people falling for conspiracies, then consider social media the fertilizer and the field. I haven't hailed FB for squat. I don't even use it, but FB algorithms have been responsible for one genocide already, and I won't give it credit for the Arab Spring even for the small successes that were achieved. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/15/technology/myanmar-facebook-genocide.html https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/15/technology/myanmar-facebo...
the-dude 6y ago
The sky seems to have cleared up here in NL and appears more blue, and the sun feels more intense. I am not the only one who has this impression. I spend considerable time outside.
threatofrain 6y ago
People blame FB for social media woes, but I feel that FB is different from the other social networks in that it’s the world you fully curate and manage. If FB is giving you grief, that’s people on your green list giving you grief. If you need FB to come in to manage that, then you’re basically saying you can’t even handle the agency involved in freedom of association.
- dade_ 6y ago
  I don’t have a Facebook account, and the company causes me grief regularly.

by dade_ 6y ago

fzeroracer 6y ago

Social media as we know it is just further exposing the rot at the core of our thinking. Before the rise of Twitter and Facebook you had shock jockeys rule the radio world spreading conspiracy theories and what not. Social media has amplified those effects by allowing them to fester and indeed among many far right media sources you see them gleefully engage in such rhetoric as well (see: Seth Rich). Social media is part of the greater symptom which is that conspiratorial thinking has gained mass appeal.

DevKoala 6y ago
Those shock jockeys didn’t use your browsing history to determine exactly which conspiracies you will be most susceptible to. Denying the responsibility of YouTube, Facebook and other platforms that pursue viewer engagement at any cost by calling them a “symptom” of society is disingenuous and almost ill intended. “Hey the cancer that put you in bed is just a symptom of who you are.”
- fzeroracer 6y ago
  Those shock jockeys engaged their viewers through taking calls, reaching out or otherwise. I'm not denying the responsibility of social media sites by abusing their algorithmic bullshit, but the fact of the matter is that the modern conspiracy theorist originated with the radio. That's where Alex Jones got his start among many others. If you don't know the history of how these things started, then all you'll do by removing Youtube, Facebook et al is treat one part of the cancer when it's metastasized to the rest of your body. It's ignorant. Sites like Infowars or Breitbart will rise from their ashes and we will have solved nothing.
  - DevKoala 6y ago
    Of course there are actors that downright pursue infecting the minds of people. However, the problem did not get out of control until the content platforms found those who were more susceptible to their message “at scale”.
- dehrmann 6y ago
  Maybe it's semantics, but you're giving to much credit to recommendations. There's no intent that specific; all they really do is see that you liked X, and most people who liked X like Y, so it shows you Y. Politically, it causes echo chambers, it can show people all sorts of conspiracy theories, but my Youtube recommendations right now are showing me rollercoasters, airplanes, magic tricks, and cooking.
  - DevKoala 6y ago
    I understand that it is just sophisticated look alike targeting. Also, I don’t mean to say that the original intent of the designers is evil. However, the effects on viewers have to be analyzed, and most likely some changes are needed to stop people from falling into these echo chambers.

vezycash 6y ago

> Social media is what is making people anxious in the first place. What you're saying is ignorance is bliss. Without social media, a few phone calls to media houses would have been sufficient to squelch the recent murder of a black male by the police. The medium is not at fault. We all hailed Facebook helped organize 'successful' revolutions in some 'oppressive' states. It's easier to believe tales about people I distrust. I prefer we focused on ways to increase transparency and fairness in government. That's the conspiracy theory vaccine we need.

deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
dade_ 6y ago
No, what I am saying is that social media is actually causing mental health issues including anxiety. If anxiety us at the root of people falling for conspiracies, then consider social media the fertilizer and the field. I haven't hailed FB for squat. I don't even use it, but FB algorithms have been responsible for one genocide already, and I won't give it credit for the Arab Spring even for the small successes that were achieved. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/15/technology/myanmar-facebook-genocide.html https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/15/technology/myanmar-facebo...

the-dude 6y ago

The sky seems to have cleared up here in NL and appears more blue, and the sun feels more intense. I am not the only one who has this impression. I spend considerable time outside.

threatofrain 6y ago

People blame FB for social media woes, but I feel that FB is different from the other social networks in that it’s the world you fully curate and manage. If FB is giving you grief, that’s people on your green list giving you grief. If you need FB to come in to manage that, then you’re basically saying you can’t even handle the agency involved in freedom of association.

dade_ 6y ago
I don’t have a Facebook account, and the company causes me grief regularly.