Overview
After nearly 15 years as a Facebook user, I've completely deleted my account. And I've also stopped posting or signing in to my Twitter account. My new (and only) active social media account is Bluesky. In this article I'll review the why and how of all this.
Toxic Trumpism
As we all know, Donald Trump lies... frequently and with little regard for those who suffer from those lies. Worse, Trump's zealous followers take their cues from him and either repeat his lies or invent lies of their own that support his themes. These lies place the social media platforms who publish them in a difficult position. They can catch them and publish disclaimers, verified by their fact checkers. Or they can simply pass them along, inadvertently amplifying them and causing them to "go viral." In the recent past, the platforms' fact checkers worked overtime and beyond, feverishly trying to keep up with it all. They were trying to do the right thing by their readers and honor the truth. Sadly, they burned out quickly and it was difficult and costly to replace them.
In his second term, Donald Trump is essentially unconstrained by any administrative or institutional guardrails. Supported by congressional sycophants and a cadre of others who would lay waste to all such guardrails, Trump is an existential threat to all those who publish. Crossing him or his propaganda agenda, even in the noblest pursuit of truth, risks getting bogged down in a public war of words or worse, costly and time-consuming lawsuits.
Zuckerberg and Musk Surrender
In an era of endless Team Trump lies, Facebook and Twitter find that it's easier and cheaper to simply eliminate fact checking. And that's just what they have done. Not only does this allow their founders to suck up to Trump and get a seat at White House dinners, but it saves them money and effort. So what if their users are subjected to lies, weird conspiracy theories, etc.?
Given all this, I have decided that I can't and won't help either of these platforms by posting or engaging on them in any way. So I've effectively disappeared from both.
Here are some references:
These days I've decided to get my social media fix exclusively from Bluesky. And while it's true that not all of my former Facebook friends have made the leap to Bluesky, many have and I've invited many others to join us there.
What's so good about Bluesky? I put this question to Google Search Labs AI and it answered as follows:
"
Bluesky is a decentralized social media platform that gives users more control over their content and experience. It's built on the AT Protocol, an open network that allows developers to build on top of it.
Features
- Custom feeds: Users can create custom feeds based on their interests, such as a feed for cat photos or a feed for mutual followers
- Content moderation: Users can create custom keyword lists to mute certain types of content, and control who can interact with them
- Starter packs: Users can create curated lists of suggested accounts to share with others
- Website addresses as handles: Users can use their website address as their handle, which could act as a verification tool
- Transparency: Bluesky is built on an open network, so no single company has complete control over the platform
- Open API: Bluesky has an open API, which makes it easier to automate with third-party tools
Benefits
- More democratic approach to content curation: Bluesky offers a more democratic approach to content curation, with less reliance on algorithmic feeds
- Safer spaces: Bluesky's moderation tools help to filter out harmful interactions and create safer spaces for meaningful engagement
- Transparency and open standards: Bluesky is built on an open network, which promotes transparency and collaborative improvements "
Conclusion
So that's it. I have no more Facebook account and I've stopped using my Twitter account. Below is a powerful quote from Brian Boland, a former Facebook developer, in his article Deleting Facebook that makes it clear why we should all consider leaving these two behind:
"The latest news that Meta is ending its fact-checking program and scaling back user protections is the final straw for me. This is the same company whose platform contributed to genocide in Myanmar, harmed teenage users and enabled political and racial polarization across the globe. Instead of addressing these harms, Meta consistently prioritizes its growth over public safety..."
Unfortunately, the same can be said of Musk's Twitter. So that's it. I'm out. These days you can find me at Bluesky. As Google's Search AI says regarding Bluesky: "... many appreciate the feeling of a more controlled and personalized social media experience compared to other platforms... [and] a lack of algorithmic manipulation in the feed, a more positive and less toxic community compared to other platforms."
See you on Bluesky!
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