Thanks for fleshing out my point a bit. I completely agree. Centralized platforms always drove culture, but when that was broadcast (emphasis on the first sylla

Thanks for fleshing out my point a bit. I completely agree. Centralized platforms always drove culture, but when that was broadcast (emphasis on the first syllable), it was a) visible to, (potentially!) comprehensible, and able to be influenced by outside observers, and b) sub-cultures developed outside the opticon's view. Now the vast majority of social activity belongs to a few opaque platforms, with consequences we don't yet know, but already seem sinister. I'm honestly more worried about how that affects adults than kids! Young people, mainly because they go to school, have more (albeit enforced) opportunities for offline socialization. As a parent, I know I'll have at least some control over my kid's online activity for a while (and once he finds a way around my router rules he'll be a journeyman hacker, so that's cool too), but there's no brake on twenty-somethings (or thirty- or forty-somethings) being pulled down the dark paths you mention. As for kids aspiring to be YouTubers or whatever? Eh, they're just chasing the high-prestige choices within their cultural ambit. It's no different than wanting to be an athlete or rock star once was. They'll find (as we all did) that actually doing so takes a ton of hard work, and a bit of luck; some will dedicate themselves to it, and learn plenty (through either success or failure); most will drift towards different dreams.