By J.L Marden
A popular Instagrammer went on a Live rant some weeks ago. It went something like this: He suspected that Instagram was messing with his likes because, based on his large following and the meagre number of likes that his recent posts had amassed, something didn’t add up. So, Instagram needed to get it together! You see, for him and other social media personalities, visibility is everything, so to mess with one’s visibility is to mess with one’s livelihood.
On June 30, the “world” celebrated World Social Media Day to recognise the “important role it plays in our society and to celebrate the way it has connected” people. On two separate occasions within the last two months, that connection been disrupted for hours when multiple social media platforms experienced some unexplained downtime. It threw the “world” into pandemonium. After all, what could we possibly do in that time? Just exist with no one watching?
On both occasions, I was unaware of these hours-long outages until later when my timeline was flooded with memes reiterating the same very serious joke: we were unable to function without social media. But, I suppose I can empathise with the rest of the “world” because they had been barred from making that connection. And over time, I’ve become amazed by just how important that connection has become. Granted, people have always been dependent on interactions and relationships as a species, but my own quandary comes when I see how connected we are to a connection that involves very little actual connection; a connection that inadvertently distances us from physical interaction the longer we indulge in it.
So, how did we get here? And where will this rapid path of innovative socialisation lead us in the future?
The breakdown
Every day, 1.6 billion active users sign on to Facebook; 1 billion to WhatsApp; 600 million to Instagram; 149 million to YouTube; 134 million to Twitter and the numbers continue in the hundreds of millions for platforms such as Snapchat, Pinterest, Reddit, LinkedIn, Tumblr and other Networks.
That’s a lot of people.
Of course, lots of celebrities make up this number as well as the people who feed off of their lives. But social media also creates a huge stage for more than just the celebrities. In fact, while long ago, radio, television and live appearances were what made you famous, now, the stage is much bigger, with the audience having far more access. This stage opens up the space for more people to gain celebrity status and often by doing less.
New Concepts
Two concepts emerge here: the Viral craze and the age of the Influencer.
Given just how huge and inclusive the stage is, with the perfect combination of circumstances, just about anyone or anything can amass the attention of millions of people. Like the traditional concept of fads, going viral is often short-lived but viral content goes down in the social media history books and—if the subject plays their cards right—can lead and has led to the launch of careers and businesses.
The other side of the coin is the new career path of Influencing. Social media is about liking—or not liking—what we see, then talking about it. You pair that simple concept with the large numbers I mentioned above and what you have is a huge money-making opportunity, if used correctly, for practically everyone.
This large stage is a 24/7 hub of entertainment and never-ending content. At any point in the day or night, millions of people are actively scrolling, trolling, liking or commenting. What people like, they follow and businesses and brands use this culture to capitalise on sales. So while people use the stage to be seen, businesses and brands use it to advertise to those watching the show. And oh, it’s a huge show!
Some people are seen more than others—the celebrities—and with a bigger stage and a broader definition of the word, businesses and brands use these celebrities to influence. What people see, they like, remember? The celebrities (influencers), in turn, are paid for using these brands for their followers to see.
Influencers are such a big deal, that it is actually the new career of choice for many of our children. Where doctors and lawyers were the high-earning positions that the ambitious young ones aspired to, children of today are already six-figure earners—on par with these professions—before they even hit high school.
In today’s money-making world, visibility has become even more valuable than skill. Depending on the number of followers they have, influencers can make from a few thousand to hundreds of thousands of dollars for a single post, just because of visibility. Therefore, in the future working world, to make lots of money your skill must be: visibility. So, does this mean ‘so long’ to our Degrees?
The spillover effect
With all this going on in the intangible social media-sphere, it is only natural that there would be some spillover effect into the real world. And what we find is that with the ever present possibilities and potential that social media presents, there is a perpetual state of hopefulness by more people than you think that they will be seen, go viral and get money, even in Guyana.
But life just isn’t that interesting all the time is it? So what happens then? In their quest to be seen, they have to continually ensure that what they share is interesting. This results in the constant curation of experiences—scripts and poses and facades and edits—all aimed at creating a perceived reality. The perfect shot.
Now while this is serious business for those actually looking to make money, there is still the large majority of the audience who aren’t necessarily aspiring to that level. But they are all still on the stage, and the potential to be seen still goes for them as well. So what does that mean? That in their own way, they too must ensure that every post, every imprint is ideal.
The loss of the experience
Years ago, I remember watching the Disney movie Wall-E. The earth was no longer habitable and the space ship transporting the world’s population to find a more suitable planet was filled with obese human beings being carted around on hover-beds with built-in computer screens that served as their 24/7 means of entertainment and task completion. It was by pure accident that two of these people were thrown off their beds and detached from their screens. When they saw each other, it was as if they had only then known of the other’s existence.
In today’s world, every experience has changed due to the constant obsession of creating perfect moments. The focus is no longer on living the experience, but on straining it through the sieves that are our mobile devices for our audience to experience. We are all onlookers and performers at the same time, watching others perform and performing for others to watch us.
The value is no longer in the moment, but in the fleeting yet immortal imprint that we leave behind.
It is no longer about socialising—that comes after the endless group photos and selfies and mirror shots and #OOTDs and taking multiple shots just to make sure you have options, then having everyone review those options, then sharing those options, then posting the best pictures (many times all while still being at the actual event). We have forgotten how to enjoy natural experiences and instead many of us have actually rewired our brains to instead enjoy the process of curating these experiences for the world to see. This is our new purpose; this is our new job. To create the perfect online version of ourselves. I find it exhausting, to be honest.
Small steps
And while I am still part and parcel of this culture, on a stage being seen by just under 1,500 followers, I have become more conscious of my usage and—more importantly—my behaviour at social events. Amidst all the photos and poses and boomerangs and timed laughter and long expired plastered smiles and perfect food placement and selfies and blah blah blah, I try to pay attention. I try to ingrain in my mind what in this moment is special or what I will remember most about it. And when I post, I post the captured moment from the event that I found the most meaningful. I try not to like posts unless I genuinely like them, and, contrary to the culture, that often means seeming like I am unsupportive of my friends’ lives (we have all no doubt encountered the “why haven’t you liked my post?” question).
I have reduced my social media usage; I even deleted my Facebook account. I realised that I have developed a low tolerance for the new type of behaviour people exhibit in public. The majority of it doesn’t seem real. I find myself looking at persons taking seemingly random photos and wondering just how meaningful that moment is to them; just how much they like the person they are hugging (#Squadgoals), or if they really are as confident as they claim to be (#HotGirlSummer).
I hope that through this long journey, you did not think that my aim was to turn you away from social media. I am just curious about whether in 20 years or so we will have evolved into a species that no longer needs physical interaction because of the virtual age that endlessly feeds us. What will the working world look like, when so many of us are moving from skills-based income earning to the concept of becoming “self-made”?
The possibilities are endless, and we can only wait and see. But, in the meantime, I prefer to take small steps to retain that part of myself that still enjoys the simple things in life-just in case.
