The problem today with a majority of social media users

[MikaelYosef]

I came across this link _http://waitbutwhy.com/2013/07/7-ways-to-be-insufferable-on-facebook.html which is humorous but accurately sums up the majority of users on social media. I say this broadly as I would consider myself a fairly average person, with a fairly average bunch of friends - they all seem to annoy me in the same way that random people annoy me, and for the very same reasons that would make most of them in-congruent in terms of world views with folks here. Although the link is Facebook specific, I suspect it could apply to other social media platforms too.

Originally I opened a Facebook account, waaaay before it was considered 'cool' or 'popular' in the mainstream. None of my friends had heard of it at the time and it was a way of storing my nature photos as a backup to backups online. (As a side note I couldn't care less if they suddenly became property of a large corporation. They were sentimental and only had meaning to me - if some corporate person wants to steal a picture of a boring tree, go right ahead, they're not getting those seconds of their wasted time back and I could not care less). It was easier than emailing the photos to myself, and I was also able to share them with family and close friends when I was away on work trips to show them I was still alive. As an introvert trying to be heard in a world full of noise, it was a good resource and I was able to share some experiences with family and friends freely without having to shout, wave my arms in the air or generally draw unwanted attention to myself. Fast forward a few years and over time this changed, it became popular, attracted everyone - even the anti-computer nerds decided computers were now cool - and the noise increased.

Now, it is just like the rest of the real world, one that overvalues extrovertism. The louder you are, the more successful you'll be - who cares if you've got nothing important or useful to share.

Anyway that link sums up nicely everything which is wrong with social media. Although it still has some value in making plans with friends or maintaining contact in a digital world, the original purpose for me personally has changed and has been eroded and hijacked by others. It makes me grateful that quality instead of quantity is appreciated in this forum. At the end of the day though, it's still a first world problem. and I'm sure this will be completely insignificant in light of what lies ahead.

 

[MikaelYosef]

And to add a summary of the article if you don't wish to view it. Key points are:

• A Facebook status is annoying if it primarily serves the author and does nothing positive for anyone reading it.
• To be unannoying, a Facebook status typically has to be one of two things:
  
  1) Interesting/Informative
  2) Funny/Amusing/Entertaining

Furthermore....

Annoying statuses typically reek of one or more of these five motivations:

1) Image Crafting. The author wants to affect the way people think of [them].

2) Narcissism. The author’s thoughts, opinions, and life philosophies matter. The author and the author’s life are interesting in and of themselves.

3) Attention Craving. The author wants attention.

4) Jealousy Inducing. The author wants to make people jealous of [them] or [their] life.

5) Loneliness. The author is feeling lonely and wants Facebook to make it better. This is the least heinous of the five—but seeing a lonely person acting lonely on Facebook makes me and everyone else sad. So the person is essentially spreading their sadness, and that’s a shitty thing to do, so it’s on the list.

Nothing there is particularly new or revolutionary in thinking. It just sums up nicely the digital world in which a lot of people operate - and probably they are able to do so more freely than in face-to-face interactions.