When I joined Facebook in 2007, social media was a very different animal. In the ensuing decade-plus of online evolution, things got better, and then they got much worse, to the point where I’m mostly only on Facebook to post my blog links. And that seems to be pointless anyway, since many people will comment on a link I posted and it’s very clear they didn’t even visit it. Add to that the vitriolic behavior, the proliferation of misinformation and lies, and the annoying ads that show exactly what I want, only to lead to the page the item is on showing it completely sold out. And then there’s the problematic and inconsistent censorship they have inflicted on my ass (and other assets) over the years, which fueled my web traffic as well as initial fury. Finally, there are the comments. I’ve culled my friends to the point where I don’t get that many rude comments, but everywhere else I visit the comments are horrendous, car-wreck collections that ruin any spare moments I go down one of those rabbit holes.
All of those things have been slowly been eroding my interest in remaining there on any meaningful manner. A few friends of mine have totally shut down their accounts, and seem all the happier for it. While I don’t myself completely deactivating my account, I’ve already pulled away in a lot of ways. The other night I deleted about 60 albums – thousands of photos going back to 2008. Most are still on this website, so this will be the main repository for that sort of thing, as long as it’s standing. Facebook will remain a source of contacts and seeing birthdays and such, but I see myself moving farther an farther away from its reach.
{Follow me on Twitter instead.}
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