Ed Bott@aristeon @adaitsman @dak3 Eh, they also make it possible to produce incredible works of journalism and education.
'If people are "ganging up on others," that's a moderation issue, not a formatting issue.
Aris Teon@edbott @adaitsman @dak3 it is a formatting issue, because the format influences human behaviour, and it's common knowledge at this point that the medium is the message.
Quote tweets are an awful feature. Journalists used Twitter long before there were quote tweets. Making bullying easier because some people are too lazy to take a screenshot isn't a worthwhile tradeoff
Sascha Segan@aristeon @edbott @adaitsman @dak3 I disagree. It's the primary feature which lets me amplify others' work and perspectives to my generally larger audience, while also adding value.
@saschasegan @edbott @adaitsman @dak3 it's also a tool that makes it easy for people to bully, ridicule and harass. Twitter is a cesspool of outrage, tribalism, and harassment, and we shouldn't emulate it.
If you really want to add value, take a screenshot and tag the author. The slowing down of the process is designed to cool down emotions and let people be more thoughtful instead of raging and ranting like over there.
@aristeon @edbott @adaitsman @dak3 Screenshots are an AWFUL way to share things. They aren't searchable, don't format well on different screens, aren't accessible. ALWAYS go with text if it's an option.
@saschasegan @edbott @adaitsman @dak3 harassment and bullying are way more awful for people than screenshots. Not searchable? Searching for content on Twitter is incredibly complicated, that's why you don't see academics using tweets as reference. People should make their own websites and write valuable content there. Unlike the birdsite or FB, Mastodon has no algorithm penalizing external links.
@aristeon @edbott @adaitsman @dak3 I've searched, used and embedded Tweets as reference hundreds if not thousands of times - it was a way to refer to a primary source for years. I wish I could reply to the rest of your concerns, but my Mastodon client doesn't show what I'm replying to and that was the part I remembered ...
@aristeon @edbott @adaitsman @dak3 Ah yes. "People should make their own web sites." If you want to gatekeep content production to the technically adept, sure.
@saschasegan @edbott @adaitsman @dak3 making a website isn't more difficult than setting up a Twitter account and tweeting. And it's a way to decentralize the internet. We must rid the internet of the corporate obsession with centralization
@aristeon @edbott @adaitsman @dak3 I think the other reason people don't want to make their own Web sites is they want to be in conversation with others, not just proclaiming out on their own. We would not be able to have this conversation if just you had a site, and I had a site.
@saschasegan @edbott @adaitsman @dak3 I joined Twitter in the era when lots of people had a blog, and I had conversations on Twitter, my site and their site. It's not that difficult once people realize that we don't need to be constrained by the format of one single app. We can communicate way better. Indeed, public discourse has deteriorated over the past few years, with levels of tribalism, anger and controversy I didn't see before.
@aristeon @edbott @adaitsman @dak3 Well yes, algorithms that seek out and amplify things that make people miserable are bad. I agree there.
@saschasegan @edbott @adaitsman @dak3 it's not just the algorithms, though. People over there used QTs to leverage their followers and dunk on "regular accounts", I don't want this place to become a battlefield where people have to compete for followers and attention. Most people here have no reason to care about follower numbers, and it's great. Mastodon works. Twitter was far better before algorithms and QTs were introduced.
@saschasegan @edbott @adaitsman @dak3 I have been harassed by people routinely and I don't need that crap here. Obviously not a concern for you. And I don't know how journalists search, but I have never been able to use the search function the same way I search for books in an archive. It's much better for people to have their own websites, they're easier to navigate and the content can be better structured. I hated QTs and I'm glad we don't have them here.