Social media isn’t social anymore.  ## Metadata - Author: [[anchovyandcapers]] - Full Title: Social media isn’t social anymore. - Category: #articles - Document Note: --- tags: - SocialMedia - TikTok - CreatorEconomy - MediaShift Author: [Author's Name] Source: [Author/Blog/Website] Reference: N/A date created: 2024-09-10 16:45 --- # Title: The Changing Nature of Social Media: From Social to Media-Only ## Table of Contents: - [Summary](#summary) - [Main Content](#main-content) - [Introduction](#introduction) - [Social Media Then vs. Now](#social-media-then-vs-now) - [The Past: Curated and Personal Feeds](#the-past-curated-and-personal-feeds) - [The Present: Algorithm-Driven Media](#the-present-algorithm-driven-media) - [Implications for Creators](#implications-for-creators) - [Implications for Consumers](#implications-for-consumers) - [Future of Social Platforms](#future-of-social-platforms) - [Notes](#notes) - [References](#references) - [Paraphrase](#paraphrase) - [Newsletter](#newsletter) - [Action Items](#action-items) - [Hypotheses](#hypotheses) - [Methodology](#methodology) - [Questions](#questions) - [Future Research](#future-research) - [Implications](#implications) - [Logical Validity](#logical-validity) - [Conclusion](#conclusion) ### References: - [Author's blog]([Link to source]) ## 📝 Summary: Social media platforms have shifted from user-driven, social-centric networks to algorithmically controlled media consumption tools. The transition, driven by TikTok’s success, has led to less control over personal feeds, making users passive consumers of content. For creators, reach is now determined by viral moments, while consumers face a deluge of disconnected media. As platforms focus more on engagement metrics than social interactions, creators and users must adjust to this "media-first" approach. ## 📖 Main Content: ### Introduction The rise of TikTok has fundamentally altered how social media operates. No longer focused on connecting users with their friends or interests, platforms now prioritize keeping users engaged and scrolling. This shift has significant implications for both creators and consumers. ### Social Media Then vs. Now #### The Past: Curated and Personal Feeds Social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter were once tools for personal connection and discovery. Users built their networks by following friends and creators, curating feeds based on their interests. Social interactions were at the forefront, and users had a sense of control over what they saw. - **Friend Networks**: Platforms helped users stay in touch with friends and gradually expand their circles. - **Interest-Based Discovery**: By searching for topics of interest, users were introduced to creators they genuinely wanted to follow. #### The Present: Algorithm-Driven Media TikTok's model, centered around time spent on the app rather than connections, has transformed the entire industry. Feeds are now dominated by algorithmically selected content meant to keep users engaged. The result is a loss of control, with users being shown content that may be entirely disconnected from their networks or interests. - **Content Firehose**: Instead of curated feeds, platforms now flood users with a barrage of media meant to increase time spent on the app. - **Disconnected Posts**: Finding a post after scrolling past it is challenging, as posts are no longer linked to networks or interests in a meaningful way. ### Implications for Creators For creators, this shift has changed how they must approach their work. Reach is no longer tied to follower count but to the virality of individual posts. - **Follower Count Irrelevance**: A large following no longer guarantees visibility; instead, the platform's algorithm decides what gets seen. - **Viral Dependence**: Creators must focus on creating viral content to maintain relevance, making it harder to build consistent, long-term engagement. ### Implications for Consumers Consumers are now passive participants in a media-driven system, with less control over their feeds. - **Feed Control Lost**: Attempts to curate feeds no longer impact what users see. - **Mindless Scrolling**: The constant flow of content encourages disengaged scrolling, as posts lack context or connection to users’ networks. ### Future of Social Platforms While social media may be dead in its original form, people will continue to seek ways to connect online. New platforms or models will likely emerge that emphasize genuine social interaction, providing alternatives to the current "media-first" approach. ## 🗒️ Notes - **Past vs. Present**: Social media once focused on connecting users with friends and interests, but it has now shifted to content-driven engagement. - **TikTok Influence**: TikTok's algorithm has driven platforms like Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) to prioritize media consumption over social interaction. - **Creators Struggle**: Creators are increasingly dependent on viral content, making follower counts less important. ## 📖 References: - [Link to the source blog post or article] ## 🗣️ Paraphrase: 1. The old social media model revolved around building networks through friends and interests, allowing users to curate their feeds based on personal connections and genuine interests. 2. The current social media environment focuses on maximizing engagement time, resulting in feeds filled with content disconnected from users' social networks and interests, making social interaction secondary to media consumption. ## 📰 Newsletter: 📱 **The Death of Social Media: Why TikTok Changed Everything** 📱 In today’s world, social media isn’t what it used to be. Once focused on connecting you with friends and interests, platforms now prioritize serving you content that keeps you scrolling. Creators and users alike have lost control over their feeds, with viral content ruling the day. Platforms like Instagram and X are following TikTok’s lead, turning social media into a content firehose. So what does this mean for the future? Check out our deep dive into the changing landscape of social platforms. [Read more here](#). ## ✅ Action Items: - Assess current social media strategies to adapt to the algorithm-driven focus. - Explore alternative platforms or methods for more meaningful engagement with your audience. - Consider diversifying content formats, with a focus on viral potential. ## 🧪 Hypotheses: - The shift to algorithm-based feeds will continue to push creators toward short-form, viral content. - New social platforms will emerge that emphasize genuine human connections over algorithmic media consumption. ### 📊 Methodology: - Analyze user engagement trends on TikTok, Instagram, and X to track the rise of algorithm-driven feeds. - Conduct surveys to gather insights on user satisfaction with current social media platforms versus past experiences. ### ❓ Questions: - How can creators balance viral content with maintaining meaningful engagement with their audience? - What new social platforms could emerge that prioritize genuine connections over media consumption? ### 🔮 Future Research: - Investigate emerging social platforms that are focusing on genuine, interest-based interactions. - Explore the long-term psychological effects of disengaged, algorithm-driven media consumption. ### 💡 Implications: - Creators and users alike will need to adjust their expectations and strategies to navigate a media-driven social landscape. - The rise of alternative platforms that prioritize real social interaction could reshape the internet’s social fabric. ### ✅ Logical Validity: **Positive Reasoning**: - **Causal Reasoning**: The argument that TikTok’s focus on engagement time has shifted the entire social media landscape is well supported by the observed behavior of other platforms. - **Inductive Reasoning**: The conclusion that creators must adapt their content to fit this new model is logically consistent, given the decline in the relevance of follower counts. **Potential Fallacies**: - **Slippery Slope**: The claim that follower counts "no longer matter" may be exaggerated, as they still play some role in social validation and brand partnerships. ## 🎯 Conclusion: Social media, as we once knew it, has morphed into a media-first experience driven by engagem - Document Tags: [[social media marketing]] - Summary: Social media platforms like TikTok have shifted focus from social connections to maximizing user engagement. Users now have less control over their feeds, leading to a disconnect from friends and interests. The future of socializing on the internet may evolve into a new form yet to be discovered. - URL: https://lesley.pizza/social-media-isnt-social-anymore/ ***I don’t yet know if this is true, but it’s something I’ve been thinking and feeling recently. These are some of my early thoughts on the changing nature of social media…*** TikTok changed everything. Instagram, Facebook and Twitter used to be social media platforms. They’re ~~social~~ media platforms now. #### In the past Platforms used to be centered around showing you stuff your friends are doing, or stuff you like. Give or take a few degrees of separation. Because of this, your feed used to be in your control, it used to be something personal and curated. When you came across a new creator or post, you’d carefully consider if it should be a part of your feed. The **social** in social media meant that you mainly looked at posts made by your friends and creators you were interested in. Here’s how it used to work: 1. You follow your friends. 2. Based on that, friends-of-friends, and friends-of-friends-of-friends would get surfaced to you by the platform. 3. Over time, you follow them and they follow you and you build your very own social network. 4. As a result, your feed is full of people a few degrees of separation from you. 5. Big picture: Social media helped you keep in touch with your friends and extend your friend circle. In parallel, it also used to work like this: 1. You search for something you’re interested in, like cafes, gymming, or cats. 2. Over time, more creators based on your interests get surfaced to you. 3. You follow them, see their stuff, and get shown more and more content based on those interests. 4. As a result, your feed is full of creators with similar interests as you. 5. Big picture: Social media helped you build new connections with new creators all across the world. This no longer seems to be the case. #### What it’s like now TikTok is not social. It doesn’t particularly care about who you follow or your interests. It *only* cares about the time you spend on the app. Your feed is out of your hands, and in TikTok’s. Posts are now divorced from their creators. And users are drinking from a firehose of content which has the sole purpose of numbing you into submissive scrolling. Because of its breakthrough success, all the other apps have had to follow suit. Instagram finds ways to take you to the Explore page, to encourage you to mindlessly scroll. X has started surfacing viral posts that are completely unconnected to you or your interests. Their only relevance to you is that the app thinks it will make you stay on Twitter longer. How can you tell things are different now? Evidence 1: Your feed has fewer and fewer posts from people you actually follow. Evidence 2: Your attempts at curation don’t seem to have much of an impact on your feed. Evidence 3: It’s hard to find a post (from TikTok or Instagram or X) once you’ve scrolled past it. The posts are so disconnected from your “network”, there are no digital breadcrumbs to lead you back to it. #### The implications for creators If it feels like your reach is dead, it’s because it is. Your follower count doesn’t matter anymore. You, as a creator, don’t matter any more. You’re only as popular as your last viral post. In the past, if you made 90% of your content for followers and 10% to go viral to get new followers, you might have to significantly adjust this ratio. If all of this sounds miserable, it’s because it is. I’ve seen so many twitter friends leave the platform. I’ve also seen my feed turn to trash over time. All of which makes me less inclined to post as well. Many will advise you to draw your existing fans closer via things like memberships, newsletters or Patreon. While I love those things, I feel like they are complementary to social media, not substitutes. So doubling down on them doesn’t exactly plug the gaping hole that social media is leaving. YouTube right now remains surprisingly social (your feed still shows videos from the creators you subscribe to). It’s no wonder lots of TikTokers are flocking over to YouTube to build their following there. But not everyone wants to make videos. And I don’t think there’s a good alternative out there for writing-based creators who used to crush it on Twitter. #### The implications for consumers Social media is dead. It’s just media now. Drink from the content firehose if that’s what you want. But if you’re looking for the social aspect, you’ll have to put in extra effort to get it. #### The implications for ~~social~~ media platforms If you’re a platform that depends on user-generated content, and you’re screwing over the users who are generating content… Well, it doesn’t take a genius to see that isn’t going to end well. Look, I’m not saying these companies will die. It’s likely some of them will reinvent themselves – it’s possible that kids born in 2024 might only know Meta as a VR company. However, I do think these platforms, in their original socially-oriented forms, will cease to exist. #### The future People love being social on the internet. I know I do. So I imagine a new way to be social on the internet is going to emerge. I don’t know what that looks like yet, but I’m looking forward to it., Social media isn’t social anymore., anchovyandcapers, 01hwne2sxnb4y634t4w76mbjs7.