2 ms·

Ads based on your interests are a form of bullying and must be stopped? People are held hostage by these platforms because they have free content you want to w

by ipaddr 3y ago

Ads based on your interests are a form of bullying and must be stopped? People are held hostage by these platforms because they have free content you want to watch? You have control over your choices. No one is bullying you or holding you hostage. Control your desire for free content if you feel the trade off of a 30 second ad once in while is mentally degrading.

lp0_on_fire 3y ago
> Ads based on your interests are a form of bullying and must be stopped? These aren't your granddaddy's ads that were printed on the back of a newspaper or on the place mat in the diner. They are the product of invasive surveillance foisted upon the user through dark patters and deception, so I would argue the answer is a definitive "yes".
- ipaddr 3y ago
  But those ads kept following me around and bullying whenever I got a paper. Dark patterns existed before like having a doctor recommend cigarettes for weight loss. That's more bullying and pressure compared to an ad beside an article you are reading.
  - lp0_on_fire 3y ago
    Those ads in the paper weren't directly targeted at you, an individual. For the paper ads to be an analog to what we have on the internet today the advertising company of the past would have had to hire a guy in a hat and trench coat to follow you around with a notebook keeping track of every place you walked into, every book you read, every item you purchased, and everyone you interacted with. Would it _technically_ have been legal for them to do so? Probably in most jurisdictions as long as you were in public. Was it practical? No. We are living now in the digital age where a few pieces of code can replace the guy in the hat with his notebook for fractions of a penny, except worse, because now all the corporate merchants are willingly selling my purchasing data to brokers.
    - ipaddr 3y ago
      It's like direct mail advertising of the past. They send personalized groups ads/flyers/mail based on past behaviour and info they collected (did you give to animal rescue center, did you vote: for who).

by ipaddr 3y ago

lp0_on_fire 3y ago

> Ads based on your interests are a form of bullying and must be stopped? These aren't your granddaddy's ads that were printed on the back of a newspaper or on the place mat in the diner. They are the product of invasive surveillance foisted upon the user through dark patters and deception, so I would argue the answer is a definitive "yes".

ipaddr 3y ago
But those ads kept following me around and bullying whenever I got a paper. Dark patterns existed before like having a doctor recommend cigarettes for weight loss. That's more bullying and pressure compared to an ad beside an article you are reading.
- lp0_on_fire 3y ago
  Those ads in the paper weren't directly targeted at you, an individual. For the paper ads to be an analog to what we have on the internet today the advertising company of the past would have had to hire a guy in a hat and trench coat to follow you around with a notebook keeping track of every place you walked into, every book you read, every item you purchased, and everyone you interacted with. Would it _technically_ have been legal for them to do so? Probably in most jurisdictions as long as you were in public. Was it practical? No. We are living now in the digital age where a few pieces of code can replace the guy in the hat with his notebook for fractions of a penny, except worse, because now all the corporate merchants are willingly selling my purchasing data to brokers.
  - ipaddr 3y ago
    It's like direct mail advertising of the past. They send personalized groups ads/flyers/mail based on past behaviour and info they collected (did you give to animal rescue center, did you vote: for who).