Here via WordPress, I follow many blogs. I read blogs by young women who review books, older people working through grief, parents of autistic children, crafters, men who review movies, travelers, and people dealing with physical disabilities.
It helps me see that we are so varied and wonderful! It also helps me see that we all deal with adversity, and we are doing the best we can in this life โค๏ธ
But Instagram…?
On Instagram, I am only suggested pretty people, rich people… Models and celebrity and this and that. And I got to wondering…
Why don’t I ever see anyone in a wheelchair? Or just normal-looking, average-income people just sharing life? Why is it that, unless the disability is highlighted and has gone viral somehow, I never see anyone dealing with any adversity? Why is every profile suggested highly polished and trying to sell me something?
Other social media has been caught hiding users based on disability and weight*, so maybe Instagram is the same? There’s no way for me to know, and that’s the reason I deleted my account there. This blog is my only social media.
And with new stickers such as the MUTE WHITE PEOPLE sticker**, I know that Instagram is not the place for me. You see, I don’t pick and choose my flavor of racism ~ I dislike ALL racism, no matter who it is against, end of story. Racism = bad. There’s nothing for me to discuss, and I’m sad to see trendy new racism.
So, there’s something strange going on with social media. I remember back in the 2000’s fun websites, with forums, and clubs, and chat rooms. It was normal everyday people, not just celebrity or the super-rich. They were very creative too! Just people wanting to chat and share with other strangers who eventually became friends ๐ I miss those days.
There are articles at the bottom of the page about things I mentioned here. Also, I’m glad to be interacting with you, a normal, non-celebrity person living life! I like you very much ๐
What are your thoughts on this? Have you noticed anything off about social media?
์๋ ! Bye! Ciao! ๐ฆ
jarilissima
* Here’s one article about users being suppressed, with a very lame excuse that punishes users instead of just deleting bullies. The site hid people, and I quote straight from the article, “with facial disfigurement, autism, Down syndrome, and โDisabled people or people with some facial problems such as birthmark, slight squint and etc.”
** At least Instagram removed the sticker, as told in this article, but the harm is already done. I do not want to be part of any racist social media.
I agree, all racism is bad. I also agree that we need to be careful what we do on social media and how we allow it into our lives. It can be a really good experience, but it can also be dangerous. Thank you for bringing this point up. I enjoyed your post. ๐
LikeLiked by 3 people
That’s really good advice. Lately I decided social media wasn’t doing anything good for me, so I deleted my accounts. And I’m glad to hear you enjoyed my post!
On another note, that baby in your photo is super adorable! ๐
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you! I think she’s adorable, but some might say I’m biased since I’m Grammy!
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s so amazing that while I’m in the process of deleting *all* my social media accounts, I stumbled on this article of yours. I used to blog a lot before the social media craze sucked me in, and I’m even old enough to remember Usenet newsgroups and IRC rooms, not to mention the glorious days of BBS.
I’ve decided to go back to that healthy way to engage with other people, strangers especially, and I totally accepted the idea of reducing the amount of people I’m gonna be interacting with. If the price to pay is having a more focused exchange with like-minded people (or even not like-minded) outside of the echo-chambers decided by algorithms who work on dopamine-inducing mechanisms.
Thanks for this post, I needed it, right here right now! ๐
LikeLiked by 4 people
Very cool that you ended up here! Yeah, a few years back there were so many more choices than just FB, Instagram, or Twitter. Seems like that’s it today, unless you want to search blogs.
I like the idea of less interactions, but more profound interactions. I used to make actual friends online, and it was really interesting. To me, blogs are the last frontier when it comes to meeting everyday, real people ~ not just celebrity, “influencers,” or ads. Social media today is so over-saturated with influencers and people trying to turn themselves into a brand ๐ฆ
LikeLiked by 2 people
Racism is racism. (Not reverse racism when it refers to white people ๐) I judge individuals by their actions. You must be strong to have escaped anti-social media. Donโt be drawn back in. And welcome back to the more friendly blogverse.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Well said! I never thought I’d see the day when “judging someone by their character, not their skin color” would be a controversial statement โน๏ธ But well said!
And thank you! It helps that I keep in touch with friends/family in real life, which is the reason I hear most people stick with it, even if they don’t enjoy it. The blogging world is much more pleasant to me, I like it ๐
LikeLiked by 1 person
The blogging world is much kinder and more generous. I follow a lot of foodie blogs and itโs great to get an instant response to my queries. โบ๏ธ
LikeLiked by 1 person
I think itโs really good that you are getting out of as much social media as possible. I have long believed that it can do people more harm than good. Having never had Facebook or Instagram, or any of the others, I guess the closest thing to โsocial mediaโ that I participate in are WordPress and Pinterest. And at first I wasnโt even sure if I should be on those. But I have found blogging to be a fun way to share ideas and get to โknowโ people that are interesting, and from all over the world. Kind of a modern version of having pen pals like we did when I was growing up. And I agree that bloggers do seem to be everyday, real people. I really enjoyed reading your post!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Oh, yes! Blogging does have that pen pal feeling ๐ That brings me so much nostalgia to think about โค๏ธ I used to put Lisa Frank stickers on all my stationery. Hahaha
I used to have Facebook and Instagram way back when they started, so I am also aware of how much they changed, and not exactly for the better ๐ฆ
Thank you for sharing your thoughts! I’m glad you enjoyed my post ๐
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, I really needed this post!
I like to check in on my friends on Facebook once a week but other than that, only use WordPress to interact with people and YouTube (where I donโt comment, just watch).
Why do you think we no longer have all these services like MySpace, livejournal, icq, forums, Chatrooms etc? The internet seems to consist of only 3 industry behemoths now.
LikeLiked by 2 people
I think it’s because Facebook acted like a Pac Man, buying out other companies (they own Instagram now) and MySpace got really buggy back when Facebook was just starting. A mix of lots of money and timing, I suppose.
I’m sad to see older social media (we didn’t even call it that back then) gone
Glad you enjoyed the post! Thanks for sharing your thoughts ๐ It does seem like we’re stuck with 3 giant companies, all who end up with security scandals every few years. LoL
LikeLiked by 1 person
Awesome insight and authenticity. Thatโs what I love about your post. And thatโs what I also love about our beloved WordPress community! Thanks for sharing your love and inspiration! โค๏ธโค๏ธโค๏ธ
LikeLiked by 1 person
๐
LikeLike
You know you’re so right, Especially Instagram. All I use Instagram for is for updating my blog posts for more reachability. Everything is so filtered, so hidden and just not real. People just do things just so that they have something to post on their instagram stories. And all these follower interaction and all that I dunno how this is going! You have a valid point!
LikeLiked by 1 person