Tag: Social Media

  • There Goes the Social Neighborhood

    So, Zuck just bent the knee and kissed the ring.

    You know, I got off Twitter because of Elon, moving over to Threads… I guess I need to get my BlueSky account going. Sadly, I will have to keep Facebook, because that’s the only way I can communicate with anyone I know over the age of 60. I like my Instagram account, yet it will have to be a causality in the social media wars.

    All of this makes me wonder if my Myspace and Tumblr accounts are still active?

    I hated hearing people use the phrase, “post-truth world” as it seemed like such a melodramatic phrase. Now…

    And this isn’t about free speech and expression. One side will be given carte blanche while the other will be pushed out of the algorithm rotation. Just look at what Elon did to Twitter. On that platform there is only one side of the debate, and it’s his.

    As old media slowly dies off, through market forces or by investment firms’ system of strangulation, social media will play a larger role in the flow of information, and what will be considered the truth.

  • Goodbye, Twitter or X

    I have been thinking about it this weekend, and I have come to the conclusion that it is time for me to leave Twitter, or X. Not that I have a huge presence on Twitter/X, as I think half of my followers are Russian bots, but it just isn’t the same on there anymore.

    I join a long time ago, and would only pop in occasionally, but with the onset of Covid, I found myself using the app more and more. In fact, I had come to appreciate the app for being able to connect with so many different writers, at different stages of their careers, and I was starting to feel like I was a part of a larger community.

    That changed with Elon taking over. I didn’t think it was that big of a deal, as Twitter always had a cesspool side to it, and trolls abound in darkness. But, since Elon told us that he was a champion of free speech, I began to notice more and more vitriol, hate, and the lies started to boil to the surface often. Now that Elon is using Twitter/X as a platform for boosting Trump’s agenda, and hate, I cannot sit by.

    Though I know I am not a large amount of bandwidth on Twitter/X, I do know that the one commodity I have on this site is my content. And all of us put our content out here for free, which allows Elon to make more money and reach more people. Because of that, I will no longer be complicit. I will use my content, and my dollar, and go somewhere else.

    That platform will be Threads.

    And I am painfully aware that I am swapping out one billionaire for another, which doesn’t sit the best with me, but this is the world we live in. I fear that it will only be a matter of time before I will have to question if using an app is the same as making a moral choice.

  • ODDS and ENDS: Walking in the Rain, My Lit Mag Social Footprint, and Knit Blazers

    (You need more ABBA in your life)

    I got a super busy day today, and I’m only three and a half hours into it. Errands and things, you know. It’s so busy that I am writing this blog in the car as I do the Alt Side Parking dance. But what is complicating all of this is that it’s raining this morning. It’s a light rain, not that big of a deal except when it comes to one task; Walking the Dog. The dog hates the rain, and the dog won’t shit in the rain either. I know that this isn’t uncommon for most dogs, so I think many people out there will understand, but the walk still needs to happen. I’ll don all my rain gear, as will the dog. She’ll slow walk to the nearest scaffolding, as those covered places will give us the best odds for a successful movement. Yup, this is my life now. And did I mention that my dog smells awful to begin with? And that when she gets wet in the rain, her stench expands ten-fold? Did I not say that? Yeah…

    I posted a while ago about wanting to start an online lit mag/journal, and how I was trying to figure out what a good name would be. I don’t know if I’ll ever really do it, but it is a fun game that I am playing in my head. If I do do it, then there is an aspect that I am not looking forward to; and that’s the social media. Sure, maybe I’m over thinking it and trying to talk myself out of it, but I do feel that on a very basic level, to get people interested, there has to be a marketing element. You know, doing something the bring in the views… I’m not sure what that would be. Like hell am I making Tick-Toc videos. That leaves me with only one option that works on the internet, and that’s to just lie. Just lie about everything, and see if anyone notices.

    I wasted the last fifteen minutes of my writing time looking up men’s knit blazers on my phone. I need to work on the phone addiction.

  • Award Shows Aren’t Relevant

    I watched the Oscars last night, and I had a good time. I tried to Live Tweet about it, but half way through the show, I had to get the kid ready for bed, and I never got back to making snarky comments. (But I did get in on Huge Grant being a total dick while being interviewed at the pre-show.) Yet, having watched the whole show, I have to admit that the Oscars is a dull watch.

    I only tune in for nostalgia reasons. There was a time in my life, 90’s and midway through the 2000’s, where I went to the movies nearly every week. I used to work at a video store which allowed me to catch up on older films, and make friends with other cinephiles that lead inevitably to conversations/debates about movies. By the end of the year, I would have seen every movie nominated for Best Picture. It was a period of time that I was consuming great movies with some of my best friends. So, when Oscar time rolled around my friends and I were well informed with our picks, which we happily argued over endlessly.

    When I watch the Oscar’s, I want that feeling to return. It never does, but I hope. It would help if I got back into the habit of watching movies religiously. Maybe when the kid heads off to college, I’ll get some free time again.

    Even as I was watching last night, I couldn’t shake the feeling that this whole production wasn’t relevant anymore. The point of an award show is to get people interested in the consuming what is being awarded, and to see a bunch of celebrities in one room. But doesn’t social media, the demonic god that it is, do that now? I think the dropping tv ratings confirm that most people aren’t interested anymore. If it weren’t for my Quixotic quest for nostalgia, I don’t think I’d watch either. Just check out the highlights on Twitter.

    Now if the Oscars wanted to clean up the show, just cut to the parts that people are there to see; wildly successful celebrities failing to get something they want, and humble-brag acceptance speeches. Sure, leave the song performances, but cut the rest. I could get it down to two hours.

  • My Social Media and Blog Footprint

    I suck at social media. Part of it is that I keep thinking no one cares what I do or like, let alone what I am currently eating. Yet, I feel the need to get better at it. As if it were an art form which needs to be mastered. Though, I feel one cannot master it, but can only be innovative with it.

    I know that everything on social media is some form of a lie, but the same could be said for marketing, and I do believe that is what social media really is. People who are good at social media are very good at marketing themselves.

    I am not good at marketing myself. I want you to pay attention to me, but I don’t want to do anything to make you pay attention to me.

    I am a conundrum to myself.

    I feel self-conscious when I ask people to pay attention to me. This might be why I enjoy acting, and puppetry so much when it comes to theatre. I could either hide myself in a character, or literally, hide behind a puppet and never be seen. I could be the center of attention, and no one would get to know me.

    But I have a public blog. A blog that has increased its views by 50% in the past two months. So, that means there are more of you coming by to look at me. (Well, the stats are saying you are here to read the short story reviews, but a few of you venture to the other posts. In that sense, greetings!) Still, I feel very uncomfortable about mentioning this blog to the people in my daily life.

    I have been thinking about that lately; why aren’t I more aggressive in sharing this?

    Part of it is that I am still not sure if I believe that I am a professional, a hobbyist, or if I am a hobbyist advancing towards professionalism? And if I don’t believe that what I am creating has value, then how can I ask anyone else to believe it is of value?

    Maybe it’s not self-consciousness, but a mere lack of self-confidence?

    But I do like it. I like writing a blog every day. I thought about cutting back to just three days a week, but it felt weird not to post daily.

    Hence, why I am here today.

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