6 ms·

I blame social media algorithms for the hyper polarization insanity. They run the discourse now. “Own the libs” and unhinged Trump cultism on one side and “vir

by api 3y ago

I blame social media algorithms for the hyper polarization insanity. They run the discourse now. “Own the libs” and unhinged Trump cultism on one side and “virtue spiraling” and toxic negativity on the other are what maximizes engagement. If it’s negative, offensive, triggering, or insane it goes to the top of the queue because it keeps people on the site arguing and raging. Social media is a toxic destructive industry. I call them “tobacco companies of the mind.” If Musk finally kills Twitter he will be a hero. He should buy Instagram or TikTok after that.

devaler 3y ago
I am going to adopt the phrase “toxic negativity”. I’m not yet familiar with “virtue spiraling”, however.
- api 3y ago
  Virtue spiraling happens on the far left or the far right as well as within religious movements. It’s when people try to outdo each other on appearing virtuous and mobbing one another for being insufficiently so. It ends with everyone being shattered and atomized and hating each other and the movement collapsing. The toxic negativity I see on the left is a general attitude that basically everything is evil and horrible and hopeless. Any attempt to bring up good news leads to a counter attack or minimization of it. Also tends to go with discourse where the main topic is how awful the other side is. (The right hate circle jerks like that too but the tone is more aggro and less depressive.) It’s self defeating and depression inducing and generally unpleasant. Today’s discourse is just generally toxic and stupid everywhere and like I said I blame the algorithm. Algorithmic social media took everything bad about media driven discourse and turned it up to 11.
jghn 3y ago
> “Own the libs” and unhinged Trump cultism on one side and “virtue spiraling” and toxic negativity on the other This resonates. Despite being someone that the vast majority of US citizens would characterize as "left", I was commenting to my partner the other day that as I'm getting older I feel more and more like Archie Bunker. I live in a deep blue area and I can't help but roll my eyes at half the stuff that gets discussed. I almost always agree with their starting point and their general sentiment, but then it just goes off in a wild direction. And then of course the other side. It's like watching Voyager hurtling itself out past the solar system. They just keep running in a wild direction. There was a time where I'd pay more attention to right wing media as I found it overall better. A couple of decades later, hoooo boy.
- api 3y ago
  One person walks past you on the street and says "hi." The next person strips naked, smears themselves with peanut butter and feathers, and starts clucking like a chicken and saluting Hitler. Which one of these maximizes engagement? Now you understand social media and all modern mainstream political discourse.
bell-cot 3y ago
> I call them “tobacco companies of the mind.” Having known quite a few regular smokers - who remained kind, capable, healthy-ish people for decades - I'd suggest something far more negative than "tobacco companies". "Methamphetameme gangs", maybe?

by api 3y ago

devaler 3y ago

I am going to adopt the phrase “toxic negativity”. I’m not yet familiar with “virtue spiraling”, however.

api 3y ago
Virtue spiraling happens on the far left or the far right as well as within religious movements. It’s when people try to outdo each other on appearing virtuous and mobbing one another for being insufficiently so. It ends with everyone being shattered and atomized and hating each other and the movement collapsing. The toxic negativity I see on the left is a general attitude that basically everything is evil and horrible and hopeless. Any attempt to bring up good news leads to a counter attack or minimization of it. Also tends to go with discourse where the main topic is how awful the other side is. (The right hate circle jerks like that too but the tone is more aggro and less depressive.) It’s self defeating and depression inducing and generally unpleasant. Today’s discourse is just generally toxic and stupid everywhere and like I said I blame the algorithm. Algorithmic social media took everything bad about media driven discourse and turned it up to 11.

jghn 3y ago

> “Own the libs” and unhinged Trump cultism on one side and “virtue spiraling” and toxic negativity on the other This resonates. Despite being someone that the vast majority of US citizens would characterize as "left", I was commenting to my partner the other day that as I'm getting older I feel more and more like Archie Bunker. I live in a deep blue area and I can't help but roll my eyes at half the stuff that gets discussed. I almost always agree with their starting point and their general sentiment, but then it just goes off in a wild direction. And then of course the other side. It's like watching Voyager hurtling itself out past the solar system. They just keep running in a wild direction. There was a time where I'd pay more attention to right wing media as I found it overall better. A couple of decades later, hoooo boy.

api 3y ago
One person walks past you on the street and says "hi." The next person strips naked, smears themselves with peanut butter and feathers, and starts clucking like a chicken and saluting Hitler. Which one of these maximizes engagement? Now you understand social media and all modern mainstream political discourse.

bell-cot 3y ago

> I call them “tobacco companies of the mind.” Having known quite a few regular smokers - who remained kind, capable, healthy-ish people for decades - I'd suggest something far more negative than "tobacco companies". "Methamphetameme gangs", maybe?