Like most people, I harbor a side that would love to see social media die a fiery death. And I say this as someone who is rather fond of it. As I’ve stated many times, I get a lot out of it: I keep in almost daily contact with people who otherwise would have been lost to moves and time. I’ve also made some wonderful new friendships. And I’ve found support and community when I’ve needed it most.
I’ve also found death threats, gaslighting and aspects of friends I would have rather not seen and that probably weren’t necessary for me to know about.
But the biggest reason I’d love to stop all social media is that I am exhausted by it. I am worn out by trying to get across 5 or 6 platforms to promote my work and finding so little reward for doing so.
As news started breaking that Congress passed legislation demanding TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance to sell it - or face a ban of the platform from app stores and web hosting services - I felt somewhat relieved. Ban it all. I’d love that time back. But it also comes at a moment when I finally hit 500 followers and my videos are starting to pick up engagement. Of course, I know that often doesn’t mean anything. I had about 10k on Twitter and nearly 15k on Facebook. A pittance by the standards of a Kardashian or any 14 year old who likes to dance, but nevertheless a potential audience of alleged fans who would surely turn into some financial compensation for my work.
Or so I thought. The reality isn’t even close.
Accepting the fact that not everything I do is for everyone who likes me, there is another factor in all of this: The Algo. When 15k follow your fan page, you have to wonder why your videos are only getting 3 views. (But don’t worry, for $$$ you can BOOST THIS POST!) Conversely 80 followers on TikTok can translate to 11k views. It’s the new math.
None of this would even matter if we didn’t currently have an economy where we were forced to prop each other up. I joke that we’re sending the same $5 back and forth on Substack, but it’s not that far off from the reality. Our side hustles have side hustles. Lest you think that it’s only us creative types who probably deserve it because we got into a dumb, penniless profession to begin with, rest assured it is many people whom don’t deserve it, like teachers. There’s a reason multi-level marketing and those ugly leggings became so popular.
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