4 ms·

The seriousness of the problem didn't hit me until more like 2014–15. I've had a lot of conversations about this with like-minded friends, wondering what went w

The seriousness of the problem didn't hit me until more like 2014–15. I've had a lot of conversations about this with like-minded friends, wondering what went wrong, and when it got really bad. One of the factors that I've come to focus on, in retrospect, is smartphone penetration—which crossed 50% in the US in 2012.[0] The wide currency of social media apps did a lot to allow the metastasis of the "libidinal-discursive configurations" that Fisher identifies. Tumblr culture was an earlier harbinger, but I don't see how we can compare it to what subsequently developed on progressive-left Twitter. [0]: https://techcrunch.com/2012/05/07/nielsen-smartphones-used-by-50-4-of-u-s-consumers-android-48-5-of-them/ https://techcrunch.com/2012/05/07/nielsen-smartphones-used-b...

zozbot234 5y ago
> Tumblr culture was an earlier harbinger, but I don't see how we can compare it to what subsequently developed on progressive-left Twitter. We can compare it because it's the same memeplex, just on a different medium. Just as we can compare Qanon nuts writing on 4chan vs. Facebook.
psyc 5y ago
Fancying myself somewhat of an archivist of such matters, I believe the timeline of the Culture War must include 'mansplaining' (LiveJournal, 2008), Dickwolves (Penny Arcade, 2010), and Gamergate (originally WordPress, 2014). Each of these events brought feminist writers / bloggers into explosive contact with the meme-engines of the web, giving terms and concepts such as 'mansplaining', 'rape culture', and 'toxic masculinity' wide and rapid dissemination.
- FooBarBizBazz 5y ago
  Your examples are excellent. To a "normal person", some of them seem so unimportant. And yet. I would be fascinated by a real history of this stuff. It'd be almost impossible to find someone who could do it honestly, though. Having lived through it, I remember op-ed pieces, which I can no longer find, that I clearly remember as events that shaped the way people around me thought and talked. For just one example, I clearly remember reading an op-ed calling for the word "gross" to be used against those who stood in the way of feminist aims. The idea was that physical disgust was a "conservative" emotion thay could be repurposed -- and that women's role as arbiters of sexual attractiveness could be useful here. Now today I still occasionally hear the word "gross" used in this way. It's almost a shibboleth. If only I could find that op-ed! Here's another empirical example (US chosen as it leads Europe in these things): https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=all&geo=US&q=gaslighting https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=all&geo=US&q=g... We can see the exponential plain as day. What I want to know is: What was the spark, the seed, the detonator? The problem is, it's fundamentally, mathematically, difficult to run diffusion backwards, let alone an explosion, let alone viral reproduction. "Was it the lab or the wet market?" Lyapunov exponents get in the way of telling. And self-interest. And actual -- yes, though I hate the word -- gaslighting by the actors themselves. But the history hasn't quite been erased yet. I think a dedicated person could piece a lot of it back together.
  - zozbot234 5y ago
    > For just one example, I clearly remember reading an op-ed calling for the word "gross" to be used against those who stood in the way of feminist aims. The idea was that physical disgust was a "conservative" emotion thay could be repurposed It's interesting that this kind of smart culture jamming is also now mostly coming from the conservative side of the aisle. Trump has been very shrewd in using liberals' emotional stances to "own" them, discredit his would-be opponents and effectively push his own policy proposals. (Such as repeatedly describing other countries as acting "unfairly" towards the U.S. - a pretty clear dogwhistle targeted at the liberal emotion of "fairness"!)

zozbot234 5y ago

> Tumblr culture was an earlier harbinger, but I don't see how we can compare it to what subsequently developed on progressive-left Twitter. We can compare it because it's the same memeplex, just on a different medium. Just as we can compare Qanon nuts writing on 4chan vs. Facebook.

psyc 5y ago

Fancying myself somewhat of an archivist of such matters, I believe the timeline of the Culture War must include 'mansplaining' (LiveJournal, 2008), Dickwolves (Penny Arcade, 2010), and Gamergate (originally WordPress, 2014). Each of these events brought feminist writers / bloggers into explosive contact with the meme-engines of the web, giving terms and concepts such as 'mansplaining', 'rape culture', and 'toxic masculinity' wide and rapid dissemination.

FooBarBizBazz 5y ago
Your examples are excellent. To a "normal person", some of them seem so unimportant. And yet. I would be fascinated by a real history of this stuff. It'd be almost impossible to find someone who could do it honestly, though. Having lived through it, I remember op-ed pieces, which I can no longer find, that I clearly remember as events that shaped the way people around me thought and talked. For just one example, I clearly remember reading an op-ed calling for the word "gross" to be used against those who stood in the way of feminist aims. The idea was that physical disgust was a "conservative" emotion thay could be repurposed -- and that women's role as arbiters of sexual attractiveness could be useful here. Now today I still occasionally hear the word "gross" used in this way. It's almost a shibboleth. If only I could find that op-ed! Here's another empirical example (US chosen as it leads Europe in these things): https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=all&geo=US&q=gaslighting https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=all&geo=US&q=g... We can see the exponential plain as day. What I want to know is: What was the spark, the seed, the detonator? The problem is, it's fundamentally, mathematically, difficult to run diffusion backwards, let alone an explosion, let alone viral reproduction. "Was it the lab or the wet market?" Lyapunov exponents get in the way of telling. And self-interest. And actual -- yes, though I hate the word -- gaslighting by the actors themselves. But the history hasn't quite been erased yet. I think a dedicated person could piece a lot of it back together.
- zozbot234 5y ago
  > For just one example, I clearly remember reading an op-ed calling for the word "gross" to be used against those who stood in the way of feminist aims. The idea was that physical disgust was a "conservative" emotion thay could be repurposed It's interesting that this kind of smart culture jamming is also now mostly coming from the conservative side of the aisle. Trump has been very shrewd in using liberals' emotional stances to "own" them, discredit his would-be opponents and effectively push his own policy proposals. (Such as repeatedly describing other countries as acting "unfairly" towards the U.S. - a pretty clear dogwhistle targeted at the liberal emotion of "fairness"!)