Controversy creates clicks, but probably not cash: "It’s why social media addicts exist in a world of their own, why they visit family on the holidays and are shocked when people often have no idea what they’re talking about, how people can live in the most prosperous time in human history and feel uniquely burdened. It wants you angry, depressed and slightly hopeless. Doom sells. Doom clicks. Doom makes you keep pressing that refresh button, staring into the empty gaping maw, wondering where the evening went."
I remember walking through the Met back in 2018 with someone who was "big on social media" as well as their significant other (my friend from college). The event unfolded one way for the two of us looking at the exhibits, another for the person posting about it. That fascinated me.
I've always kept my distance from the place. I'm not sure how some folks can post 50-100 times a day and seriously "engage" with one another in various pitched battles. Sometimes I see life stories on these sites, but they're all filtered through the poster's lens, team affiliation, etc. I sometimes wonder what their real lives are like, albeit only briefly. Is it a tragedy if you can't at least get a take out of it? If a post drops in the marketplace of ideas and nobody is following you...
It really is amazing. They willingly became the human equivalents of ChatGPT long before that chatbot hit the scene, and they're doing it for free. People are like, "will AI destroy everything?" even as the algorithms on these sites already turned untold thousands (millions) into AIs long ago.
It's insidious in a way, because you can get so sucked into it that you feel an obligation to participate in the discourse. Like it's more than even a job. It's a calling.
I see a similar mindset with content creators. When I used to work for big websites covering sports, it often felt like a grind that would never end. I see people facing that same challenge, talking about skipping vacations and working while sick—for a podcast or YouTube channel they do for free to an audience of a dozen people. People watching wrestling and MMA shows they hate because they are addicted to the idea of being a "creator."
It really is fascinating: someone with perhaps 6-12 months of watching a sport, maybe a sport they don't even like that much, get a little momentum with a few takes and suddenly find themselves carrying on like experts. Not because they care about the sport (they may not even watch it; it may be background filler while they tweet or post) but because, as you say, they're "creators" and will do anything "for the post."
I am so sorry for you and your family's loss, Jonathan. What a poignant commentary on what it's like to straddle the online discourse wars. I lost someone very close to me two days ago and everything you said hit home; thank you.
I am so sorry about your loss. My thoughts are with you and your family.
I have been following your account for a while on twitter. Im one of those accounts who has never tweeted and just use twitter to keep up on the latest MMA news and just to see what is going on the world. Twitter truly is a hellacious space filled with some of the most repugnant humans you can imagine. As an immigrant to America these last couple months i have wanted to learn more about the other side was thinking and seeing if i can find common ground on some issues. The most disgusting rhetoric you can imagine from calling of a civil war, how immigrants are changing and destroying America to how people of different races and ethnicities are less than human. I noticed that everytime i would read these posts i would get angry and upset and just a feeling of my energy being drained. It is not healthy yet i kept doing it. Just today for example an account with a drawing for a profile picture with over 100 thousand followers did like a 30 tweet thread about how brown people are less than white people. I mean just what the hell man. How do these individuals live every day with this hatred inside of them. Everytime i get on twitter i am bombarded with live executions, people having their heads cracked in concrete, violence towards women and every disgusting scenario you can think of. This post of yours might possibly be the most clear, vivid description of how i have been feeling for these couple months. I am so sorry about your sister again. Please take care of your self and your family. Im rambling on im sorry. Thank you for writing this. Wishing you and your family the best in this difficult time.
I'm so sorry for your loss, Jonathan. I really respect your decision--Twitter is a hell hole. But also, I wanted to say thanks, for the time you have spent there. You've brought a lot of joy into my life. There's been a lot of ups and downs for me personally, over how ever many years it's been, but a constant has always been my love/hate relationship with combat sports and knowing that you'd be one of the people I could count on to really GET it in a way I can relate to if I logged on to the tweet machine. I'm glad you've got this, so I can keep tabs on your thoughts here instead
Like, I said, I really respect the decision. They weren't a company I was every enthusiastic about, but the Elon led X isn't something I want to support and like you described, it's an awful place if you have any sort of profile (it's easier for me because I'm mercifully a Twitter nobody). If you leave, it'll help me leave. Still waiting for enough of the hockey writers jump ship too and then I won't feel so shackled to the place.
I ditched twitter about 3 years ago. I'm 3 years clean of that stench. I closed my Facebook account 12 months ago. I don't miss it and I certainly done miss the stupid, vile discourse.
This is terrific, Jonathan. Your definition of Twitter is the most accurate I’ve ever seen described in words.
I’ve found that everyone that spends time using that platform will suffer from its cruel fate soon enough. It can’t NOT negatively effect your brain or even personal AND professional life at some juncture.
Incredibly well put. I've been distancing myself from Twitter more and more too, it's not even a place to share work or promote anymore, it's as if it isn't heightened, near-fight discourse, everything is just shouting into the void. I hope to continue to see more of your wonderful words on here, though.
Best wishes Jonathan - i cant, nor can I pretend to, imagine what you've went through. I hope substack provides some comfort in times when you do feel like writing away from the noise of twitter.
I left last summer because it was disruptive to my thoughts. It's alienating. Like yourself, the loss of a loved one in May was the catalyst that set all this in motion. Nowadays I'm less anxious and distracted, but I still have twitter thoughts from time to time. It burrows deep. Stay off. You'll likely be glad you did.
Hi Jonathan, my heart goes out to you and your family. This article really resonated with me. Some years ago I lost my father within a short period to a TBI. It was devastating. Recently I have decided to divest from social media due to many of the reasons you mentioned. The main catalyst was the domino effect of various family/health, family, and personal health issues that happened at the end of the year. I found it unsustainable for my mental health to use social media in the amount I did and deal with these issues.
Thanks for sharing. I know for me that the kind of omnipresent gloom that hangs over social media isn't what I need. Part of the reason I wrote this was because I had the feeling there were others out there grappling with these kinds of issues.
We've known each other virtually forever, so you are probably very cognizant of the fact that I have never been able to do that for long online. Maybe this will be the time.
I know how hard it can be. And I know the pain of losing a sibling to their demons. That kind of trauma will never register with the nameless and faceless.
I know the passion you have for combat sports and the desire to make sure the things we love are not forgotten to history. I hope you're able to channel that into work that fulfills you without getting lost in the noise.
It's hard because your feelings are all over the place. Sadness but also anger and frustration and guilt.
I showed the original thing I wrote to my brother and he was like "this was true and real...and you can never publish this." Anyway, I am a real mess, but I just saw the match where Stan Hansen hung a bleeding Terry Funk over the top rope and things were okay for a minute.
The guilt is a killer. I have so many regrets about my relationship with my brother in the last several years of his life. It will sneak up on you in moments that make no sense. The bit of hope I can give you is that time does help.
Controversy creates clicks, but probably not cash: "It’s why social media addicts exist in a world of their own, why they visit family on the holidays and are shocked when people often have no idea what they’re talking about, how people can live in the most prosperous time in human history and feel uniquely burdened. It wants you angry, depressed and slightly hopeless. Doom sells. Doom clicks. Doom makes you keep pressing that refresh button, staring into the empty gaping maw, wondering where the evening went."
I remember walking through the Met back in 2018 with someone who was "big on social media" as well as their significant other (my friend from college). The event unfolded one way for the two of us looking at the exhibits, another for the person posting about it. That fascinated me.
I've always kept my distance from the place. I'm not sure how some folks can post 50-100 times a day and seriously "engage" with one another in various pitched battles. Sometimes I see life stories on these sites, but they're all filtered through the poster's lens, team affiliation, etc. I sometimes wonder what their real lives are like, albeit only briefly. Is it a tragedy if you can't at least get a take out of it? If a post drops in the marketplace of ideas and nobody is following you...
It's particularly sad when you see someone trapped in this world and they aren't even monetizing it.
Like, there are people who live this way because it's all they know.
It really is amazing. They willingly became the human equivalents of ChatGPT long before that chatbot hit the scene, and they're doing it for free. People are like, "will AI destroy everything?" even as the algorithms on these sites already turned untold thousands (millions) into AIs long ago.
It's insidious in a way, because you can get so sucked into it that you feel an obligation to participate in the discourse. Like it's more than even a job. It's a calling.
I see a similar mindset with content creators. When I used to work for big websites covering sports, it often felt like a grind that would never end. I see people facing that same challenge, talking about skipping vacations and working while sick—for a podcast or YouTube channel they do for free to an audience of a dozen people. People watching wrestling and MMA shows they hate because they are addicted to the idea of being a "creator."
It's all so weird and sad.
It really is fascinating: someone with perhaps 6-12 months of watching a sport, maybe a sport they don't even like that much, get a little momentum with a few takes and suddenly find themselves carrying on like experts. Not because they care about the sport (they may not even watch it; it may be background filler while they tweet or post) but because, as you say, they're "creators" and will do anything "for the post."
I am so sorry for you and your family's loss, Jonathan. What a poignant commentary on what it's like to straddle the online discourse wars. I lost someone very close to me two days ago and everything you said hit home; thank you.
So sorry to hear about your sister. Love, hugs & prayers from the Bloody Elbow community.
Sorry for your loss, Jon. My sincerest condolences.
I am so sorry about your loss. My thoughts are with you and your family.
I have been following your account for a while on twitter. Im one of those accounts who has never tweeted and just use twitter to keep up on the latest MMA news and just to see what is going on the world. Twitter truly is a hellacious space filled with some of the most repugnant humans you can imagine. As an immigrant to America these last couple months i have wanted to learn more about the other side was thinking and seeing if i can find common ground on some issues. The most disgusting rhetoric you can imagine from calling of a civil war, how immigrants are changing and destroying America to how people of different races and ethnicities are less than human. I noticed that everytime i would read these posts i would get angry and upset and just a feeling of my energy being drained. It is not healthy yet i kept doing it. Just today for example an account with a drawing for a profile picture with over 100 thousand followers did like a 30 tweet thread about how brown people are less than white people. I mean just what the hell man. How do these individuals live every day with this hatred inside of them. Everytime i get on twitter i am bombarded with live executions, people having their heads cracked in concrete, violence towards women and every disgusting scenario you can think of. This post of yours might possibly be the most clear, vivid description of how i have been feeling for these couple months. I am so sorry about your sister again. Please take care of your self and your family. Im rambling on im sorry. Thank you for writing this. Wishing you and your family the best in this difficult time.
If it helps any, I don't believe Twitter reflects the way most people think and feel.
I'm so sorry for your loss, Jonathan. I really respect your decision--Twitter is a hell hole. But also, I wanted to say thanks, for the time you have spent there. You've brought a lot of joy into my life. There's been a lot of ups and downs for me personally, over how ever many years it's been, but a constant has always been my love/hate relationship with combat sports and knowing that you'd be one of the people I could count on to really GET it in a way I can relate to if I logged on to the tweet machine. I'm glad you've got this, so I can keep tabs on your thoughts here instead
I have had several people tell me they really enjoyed reading my tweets. I don't know...maybe it's a bad decision to quit posting?
Like, I said, I really respect the decision. They weren't a company I was every enthusiastic about, but the Elon led X isn't something I want to support and like you described, it's an awful place if you have any sort of profile (it's easier for me because I'm mercifully a Twitter nobody). If you leave, it'll help me leave. Still waiting for enough of the hockey writers jump ship too and then I won't feel so shackled to the place.
I ditched twitter about 3 years ago. I'm 3 years clean of that stench. I closed my Facebook account 12 months ago. I don't miss it and I certainly done miss the stupid, vile discourse.
This is terrific, Jonathan. Your definition of Twitter is the most accurate I’ve ever seen described in words.
I’ve found that everyone that spends time using that platform will suffer from its cruel fate soon enough. It can’t NOT negatively effect your brain or even personal AND professional life at some juncture.
It's hard not to be influenced by the culture there, where even the good people are defined by how mean they can be to enemies.
Incredibly well put. I've been distancing myself from Twitter more and more too, it's not even a place to share work or promote anymore, it's as if it isn't heightened, near-fight discourse, everything is just shouting into the void. I hope to continue to see more of your wonderful words on here, though.
🙏🤍 sorry for your loss.
Best wishes Jonathan - i cant, nor can I pretend to, imagine what you've went through. I hope substack provides some comfort in times when you do feel like writing away from the noise of twitter.
I left last summer because it was disruptive to my thoughts. It's alienating. Like yourself, the loss of a loved one in May was the catalyst that set all this in motion. Nowadays I'm less anxious and distracted, but I still have twitter thoughts from time to time. It burrows deep. Stay off. You'll likely be glad you did.
Thanks for sharing. I hope things continue to improve for you.
Hi Jonathan, my heart goes out to you and your family. This article really resonated with me. Some years ago I lost my father within a short period to a TBI. It was devastating. Recently I have decided to divest from social media due to many of the reasons you mentioned. The main catalyst was the domino effect of various family/health, family, and personal health issues that happened at the end of the year. I found it unsustainable for my mental health to use social media in the amount I did and deal with these issues.
Thanks for sharing. I know for me that the kind of omnipresent gloom that hangs over social media isn't what I need. Part of the reason I wrote this was because I had the feeling there were others out there grappling with these kinds of issues.
Love to you and K and the family. Hope you can hold onto your peace.
We've known each other virtually forever, so you are probably very cognizant of the fact that I have never been able to do that for long online. Maybe this will be the time.
I know how hard it can be. And I know the pain of losing a sibling to their demons. That kind of trauma will never register with the nameless and faceless.
I know the passion you have for combat sports and the desire to make sure the things we love are not forgotten to history. I hope you're able to channel that into work that fulfills you without getting lost in the noise.
It's hard because your feelings are all over the place. Sadness but also anger and frustration and guilt.
I showed the original thing I wrote to my brother and he was like "this was true and real...and you can never publish this." Anyway, I am a real mess, but I just saw the match where Stan Hansen hung a bleeding Terry Funk over the top rope and things were okay for a minute.
The guilt is a killer. I have so many regrets about my relationship with my brother in the last several years of his life. It will sneak up on you in moments that make no sense. The bit of hope I can give you is that time does help.
terribly sorry to hear about your loss, man.
walking away was the right move. find your peace, and hold that love in your heart. don't let the noise get through.
This was great.