Dan GillmorJul 29, 2023

I hope that Mastodon folks who like to scold newcomers will realize how off-putting -- and damaging -- that behavior is.

Please be helpful, not scornful. Let's reduce the genuine risk of poisoning fediverse growth, and thereby giving social-media oligarchs indefinite control over online discourse.

Having said that, Mastodon/fediverse could/should do more to make users' experiences more gratifying.

Read this essential post from @kissane to understand more. https://erinkissane.com/mastodon-is-easy-and-fun-except-when-it-isnt

Show threadEvgeny Lepekhin
@dangillmor @kissane as many came from #twitter which very famous for being a toxic place, it's no surprise people took their old habits with them. Also when it comes to discussing politics here, #mastodon reminds me of twitter very much.
Jul 29, 2023 at 6:22pmMastodon for iOS
Show threadChristine SykesJul 29, 2023
@evgenylepekhin @dangillmor @kissane I get what you mean. I'm trying to find the right balance of politics on my feed without feeling the Twitter-like levels of negativity. I want to be able to have/see political discussion/info here without the knee-jerk toxicity and hate.
Show threaddoctorambientJul 30, 2023

@evgenylepekhin I find this comment fascinating and counter to my experience. (Definitely not saying that you are wrong, just curious why our experiences differ.)

I have a lot of political interactions here and they have been almost exclusively civil and friendly. The exact opposite of Twitter where it was all people scoring points of perceived enemies. And insane levels of anger...I can't be on, er, X for 5 minutes without getting mad. Very different here, for me anyway.

@dangillmor @kissane

Show threadEvgeny LepekhinJul 30, 2023

@doctorambient there are definitely less livid comments and replies on #mastodon than on #twitter, way less.

But it all depends on what topic you're discussing, what's your position, and what flag is over your dome.

You won't get a lot of hatred unless you proclaim an opinion different from an official "party line".

@dangillmor @kissane

Show threadEvgeny LepekhinJul 30, 2023

@doctorambient here's an example to paint a picture.

If I say something about war in Ukraine or LGBT+ that doesn't coincide with statements of Western society, I'll be labeled as a fascist before you can count to three. Been there.

When it comes to a sensitive topic like this people are not ready to listen and articulate. They use cliches from the media, 'cause it's easier.

Usually people who do that have a line "freedom of speech" on their profile. Hypocrisy.

@dangillmor @kissane

Show threaddoctorambientJul 31, 2023

@evgenylepekhin

You mention cliches which always reminds me that "slogans are machines for stopping thought." Which is, it seems, a sort of counter-slogan.

@dangillmor @kissane

Show threadJürgen HubertJul 31, 2023

@doctorambient @evgenylepekhin @dangillmor @kissane

The #Fediverse is still overwhelmingly white European/north American in character, which shows up frequently.

Sometimes bad, wrong takes might be well-meaning due to ignorance, but too often they are _not_ well-meaning. Either way, we need a lot more diversity around here for the Fediverse to truly thrive.

Show threaddoctorambientJul 31, 2023
@juergen_hubert Totally agree with that!