Paris Marx

Instagram head Adam Mosseri says pretty conclusively they don’t want Threads to be the new app for news and journalists. Makes sense given Meta is threatening to pull news in Canada and California.

Ultimately, Threads is a sanitized space for brands, grifters, and celebrities — all designed to sell you more shit.

#meta #tech #threads #socialmedia #instagram

Jul 7, 2023 at 7:20pmWeb
Show threadЮ ⁂Jul 7, 2023
@parismarx And yet our small town municipality's major social media channels are on Instagram. As well as any German media outlet in existence. On a platform that started out as a photo sharing app. I am not saying this is good. Quite the opposite. But truth is, threads will be so seamlessly aligned alongside Insta. It is the easiest hop. Which will lead to major and minor outlets using it. There is no strong force to oppose this. I hope I'll be proven wrong.
Show threadRobert GuillamJul 8, 2023

@yuliyan @parismarx I wonder what they can do to influence this, beyond changing their moderation policies? tweak the visibility? Shadowban?

Ultimately people will post what they want.

One key thing I learned from Mastodon and the Twitter debacle is who you follow is very important.

Show threadЮ ⁂Jul 9, 2023
@RoboGorillaman @parismarx It is certainly possible to control the types of information that will be suitable to post just by allying a certain design that is in favor of certain features. But let's not kid ourselves believing a single word that this is not aiming to be the next twitter. Meta will embrace every kind of content as long as it contribute to the growth of the user base. The cozy idea of a space safer than twitter that they present is total bs imo.
Show threadMadeline Konrad 🏳️‍⚧️ ⚢⚧🌹Jul 7, 2023

@parismarx given that this is how insta functions *now*, that makes a lot of sense.

And it's one of many reasons why I'm not touching Threads with a 39-and-a-half foot pole!

Show threadParia sans portefeuilleJul 7, 2023

@parismarx

"verticals"

So that's a noun now ?

Show threadBen Ford Jul 7, 2023
@PariaSansPortefeuille @parismarx has been for a while. It’s a business term that basically means “a specific niche interest, from bottom to top.” Its use here means that @mosseri has forgotten that he’s speaking to real people.
Show threadRednekuloJul 8, 2023

@PariaSansPortefeuille
@parismarx
It can be a verb, an adjective, a noun, an adverb:

They will vertical vertical verticals vertically.

The possibilities are endless.

Show threadParia sans portefeuilleJul 8, 2023

@rednekulo @parismarx

I swear it's the same gang who made "impact" into a verb.

Show threadAGTMADCAT 🇬🇧🇺🇸🇺🇦🇹🇼🇵🇸Jul 8, 2023
@PariaSansPortefeuille @parismarx Wait is that not a word that most people are familiar with in this context? It's business-speak but I didn't think it was any more obscure than e.g. Synergy.
Show threadBunnytown 💜⁷Jul 8, 2023
@PariaSansPortefeuille @parismarx
The only time I'm comfortable hearing this is in the context of wine tasting and even then it's still only a sort-of noun! 🍷 😄
Show threadSloan StudioJul 7, 2023
@parismarx @BlackAzizAnansi I stopped using Insta when half my feed became ads and suggestions. Broke the experience for me completely.
Show threadPari Moon-ForestJul 8, 2023
@SloanStudio I don't use it on my phone but on a laptop with Adblocker plus, I get "suggested posts" (usually cats) but no ads.
I have friends who wouldn't quit it is why I stayed, but no ads over here.
Show threadkira :3Jul 7, 2023
@parismarx i know they've morphed their other platforms into nothing but a straight ad feed, but at least they benefit from distant echoes that they were once useful for social stuff. seeing them launch a brand new one is kind of funny because they're apparently just skipping the part where the app was ever useful for literally anything
Show threadAndy   #RIPYassieJul 7, 2023
@parismarx it's good to have a place for that type of reprobate to hang out and market to each other in, right?
Show threadTambriaJul 7, 2023
@parismarx this closed the app for me. I don’t need fluff.
Show threadTom Bellin Jul 7, 2023

@parismarx This feels like a "saying the quiet part out loud" moment.

Threads (like Insta) isn't really supposed to be a place where people gather to interact. It's a place where a captured and passive audience receives pre-determined messages from influencers/advertisers.

Social media as cable television.

Show threadrhizomeJul 8, 2023
@tob
They've always been trying to create a one-way stimulus-consumption cycle. So much of capitalism is organized around that kind of relationship, the Luddite pressure is immense.
@parismarx
Show threadaarondleongJul 7, 2023
@parismarx i spend more time blocking advertisers and "suggested accounts" on IG than i do seeing the images from the accounts i care about. Why would i expect Threads to have value?
Show threadMichael ☕️Jul 8, 2023
@parismarx
All the more reason to avoid at all costs.
Show threadtako bellJul 8, 2023
@parismarx For people who follow their local commercial radio stations
Show threadRednekuloJul 8, 2023
@parismarx
If they will really try to discourage news from the platform it will fail IMO.
Show threadŚJul 8, 2023
@rednekulo plenty of news orgs are on there already, same for journalists. They may not want it to be about News, but it’s not entirely in their hands to be honest.
Show threadRednekuloJul 8, 2023
@defcon
They could try deboosting news. Given that the timeline is algorithmic, they have a lot of power over what content is seen.
Show threadAlmostHumanJul 8, 2023
@parismarx It's ominous the way they write about promoting content. As if it shouldn't have anything to do with what I want to see or who I want to follow, just what they think I should be shown. I know that's how things have been for a while but it's strange how open they are about it now
Show threadstevenJul 8, 2023
@parismarx My employer is betting on news being a big part of Threads
Show threadMatthew Jul 8, 2023
@parismarx I feel that is practically true that. It doesn't however outweigh one of the reasons why I don't like the Threads and it's certain userbase there like LibsOfTikTok which harass and make smear campaign towards trans people. Facebook clearly knows what their doing for not even banning that account as they know they benefit people like her on their platform all to just make money.
Show threadPari Moon-ForestJul 8, 2023
@parismarx True that about the sell you shit thing. But as I said elsewhere today, I don't use "social" for "news". I use news sites for news. I don't need it filtered through a person.
I use it for socializing and I've made some really good internet friendships in certain little curated corners. Between Facebook Purity, not using Instagram on a phone and here and lists when I used Twitter, I was able to pretty well curate away from grifters, brands and all but a few celebrities.
I think the only people mad about this are news journalists.
I think that sort of thing should have it's own site. I would join but be very selective in viewing.
Show threadEINGFOAN  Jul 8, 2023
@parismarx @briankrebs I like meta almost as much I like twitters new ux
Show threadYury MolodtsovJul 8, 2023
@parismarx @Alexmak You're saying this as if they prohibited news and journalists.
Show threada1Jul 8, 2023
@parismarx the place wher no-nipples-bots feel at home.
Show threadpa28Jul 8, 2023
@parismarx @briankrebs this is exactly what it looked like to me the 30 seconds or so I looked at my inaugural TL there. Good thing I used a burner account to login.
Show threadmadsoxJul 9, 2023
@parismarx I don’t have any other expectations for Threads, their “privacy” is laughable (not allowed in the EU yet, amirite) and the app is pretty klunky and limited. So I won’t be using it for much, but it’s a way to say FU to Elmo, innit?
Show threadBellison22Jul 11, 2023
@parismarx I'd say "way too late" to express that...