both companies notably ruined the internet in the 2010s by consolidating discourse then taking various steps to destroy the user experience and the feel of the communities for profit.
so, broadly, the web went from cozy, small hobby forums in the 90s and 00s, then with the 10s as a transitional period, the 20s being practically complete corporate control of online discourse.
it’s a bummer. but nothing lasts forever. where will we go next?
This really resonates with me for the most part. I hate Reddit but it’s still the best I can find, especially for non-tech interests. At the same time nothing has felt personal for such a long time. On the 00s and early 10s I had forums that were mostly for a specific topic but they grew on me so I lurked their “off topic” channels a lot. I enjoyed it and felt like I belonged. Today it all hyper-optimized for maximum engagement, no matter how meaningful or enjoyable it is. A friend lured me into threads and I finally deleted it again two weeks in or so. I see nothing by people I care about but lots of bs from MAGAs or other idiotic takes that just scream “tell them how wrong they are” at me and I can’t take it any more.
Okay one powerful attraction of Lemmy is that here, some people are outright fucking KIND, and thoughtful, and considerate. And we can recognize their names more easily, due to the lower volume of content, and especially the lack of an algorithm pushing profits over your interests (you know that’s on purpose, right? People who pay money to X have their posts promoted more highly than those who do not - your own interests be damned). Like whenever we see a comment from Lvxferre I’m excited and always anticipate good things coming:-).
I gave up on that happening on Reddit a year ago - really multiple years but I stayed to help mod a couple small communities. There, thoughtful people are too often blown away by replies coming from the toxic scum, to the point where they, like me, didn’t even bother trying anymore.
Therefore I was going to leave Reddit anyway, no matter what happened. I did not like who it was turning me into - always defensive, always encouraged to pounce on trivial matters just to have something to talk about I guess. Imagine staying on Truth Social - you will be affected by them, you may think that you won’t, but you will.
Whereas here, if you block the big three (and are at least aware of Midwest.social), then you’ll still need to block hundreds of trolls - but it’s doable, one at a time, screetching their conservative agendas (even/especially those who label their thoughts as “leftist”). But it’s manageable, unlike on Reddit where outside of the niche subs with good moderators, it’s too difficult.
Btw those subs may increasingly come under Huffman’s control - he worships the Musk, and he’ll at some point make an announcement about “we aim to provide a more consistent experience across Reddit” - and those mods will lose their ability to decide who is or is not a troll, especially when they say things that Reddit wants to keep (bc of increasing
profitsengagement). Whatever Reddit is now, just like X (though far slower it would seem), it will change.Btw you may be interested in this article: https://medium.com/@max.p.schlienger/the-cargo-cult-of-the-ennui-engine-890c541cebcb - this is what convinced me to leave Reddit, regardless of whether I could find a home here or not.
Wow, this is super helpful! Thanks! I’m starting to feel like lemmy is more „home“
Mind you, it’s not perfect, and it definitely needs to grow or it will fall back into obscurity, but it does have a lot going for it:-).