Jon WorthJul 4, 2023

If you’re reading this toot there’s a pretty high chance you’ve asked yourself ethical questions about your social media use *and that’s why you’re here*

You’ve likewise probably got concerns about Meta and Threads

But the 90-odd % of your friends you left behind on Facebook, Insta etc. likely don’t have those concerns to the same extent as you

Mastodon has to win on user experience *as well as on ethics*. We can’t just berate the Meta users

Show threadLoukas (They/Them) 🏳️‍⚧️Jul 4, 2023

@jon

I think that's true for some extent, but the Swedish journalists, intellectuals and leftists I know who are still on twitter are there 'because everyone is there'.

So I think it's easy to focus too much on pututive technical changes when what is needed is simply a more relevant and bigger community. And that's linked to a better ux, yes, but when twitter became big it wasn't because it was user friendly but because it was relevant to connect with Arab Spring.

Show threadJon WorthJul 4, 2023
@Loukas Sure, but there are only so many “damn where the hell is that toot?" moments anyone can tolerate!
Show threadMax

@jon @Loukas True. Often, mastodon evangelists come across a bit as Linux evangelists.

Most people don't give a shit that Linux is FOSS. Windows users just don't want the hassle of switching, and just want their computers to put as few obstacles between what they want to do and themselves.

It's the same with Mastodon. Most people just want to see cat pictures.

Jul 4, 2023 at 9:29amWeb
Show threadLoukas (They/Them) 🏳️‍⚧️Jul 4, 2023
@maxieq @jon and! To broaden the topic slightly. This is the thing with democracy in general. Most people aren't ideologically committed to it - but time and again are forced to fight for it since it's the only way to get a reasonable life without someone taking away your figurative cat pictures all the time.
Show threadMaxJul 4, 2023

@Loukas @jon That's where most ideologues go wrong, I think. Which is one reason many of them don't like Mastodon!

There's a difference between 'push' and 'pull' content.

People can be tricked into believing that what they push into an algorithm is universal, because of the engagement of showing up everywhere. They can be tricked into believing their own hype.

Here? What they push don't show up anywhere. Engagement is minimal. Hence they claim this place "is dead". Which is wrong.

Show threadMaxJul 4, 2023
@Loukas @jon It is also why many journalists don't like Mastodon. They are not on social media to engage; they are there to get people to click on their articles, preferably without engaging with anyone.
Show threadLoukas (They/Them) 🏳️‍⚧️Jul 4, 2023
@maxieq @jon that may be the case for the high profile star journalists, but for the rank and file twitter is a workspace where they can quickly harvest famous people quotes to build an article in 45 minutes or less.
Show threadJon WorthJul 4, 2023
@Loukas @maxieq and then also the reason political activists could use Twitter - was to harvest this so as to then get eyeballs on what you were campaigning about (that's what drove most of my #CrossBorderRail coverage).
Show threadLoukas (They/Them) 🏳️‍⚧️Jul 4, 2023
@maxieq so you think a lot of political people on Twitter and Facebook have been getting a helping hand by the algorithms there?
Show threadMaxJul 4, 2023
@Loukas Of course, without making any value judgement about the worth of algorithms. That's what they are designed to do.
Show threadMaxJul 4, 2023

@Loukas I mean, a fire department using the algorithm to reach out to residents in an area depends on an algorithm showing even non-followers that there's a dangerous fire. That's a great benefit of an algorithm.

Vulnerable communities interlinking with each other without knowing where they should start looking for connections is another.

Algorithms is not all bad.

Show threadLoukas (They/Them) 🏳️‍⚧️Jul 4, 2023
@maxieq that function can happen without algorithms as long as there is search, which is why I think that's one of the few necessary changes. Without search you will never even know the fire service account exists unless you happen to be connected to them already at second-hand.
Show threadVirginicusJul 4, 2023
@Loukas @maxieq Ideally, users could create their own algorithms.
Show threadTor LillqvistJul 4, 2023
@maxieq @jon @Loukas To be frank, I see a lot more cat pictures on Mastodon than I ever did on Twitter. Seems that the people I follow are often more cat than dog oriented. Or is it even so that having a cat is seen by many as more “progressive” or “anti-establishment” than having a dog?
Show threadLoukas (They/Them) 🏳️‍⚧️Jul 4, 2023
@tml @maxieq it's because autistics tend to have cats because they are quieter and don't force us to leave the house;)
Show threadAlonJul 4, 2023
@maxieq @jon @Loukas Not "a bit." It's exactly the same, and often it's the same people.