What we know of Facebook's algorithms suggests it's probably not a good vehicle for changing people's minds because the algorithms keep feeding people more of the same, thus reinforcing whatever their opinions were in the first place. A dissenting voice might be visible but would be quickly drowned out by the bulk of contrary material being delivered. One can conceivably find and motivate like-minded people, but changing people's minds? The system isn't built for that. I suspect most social media isn't. I confess that I've kept my author page (which has "only" 55,000 followers), but I generally stay away from the political, my goal being to ultimately convert followers into fans that might buy my books. I support political causes by talking to people I know and contributing to causes in which I believe. You're certainly right about FB not being a good vehicle for changing political opinions.
Good post, although I’ve never understood why people claim people won’t change their mind on social media. I have done so many times because of facts someone shared.
You're one of the good ones, MaryClare. I guess people like you just get drowned out amongst the tidal wave of dissenting opinions and meanness that it gets hard for us creators to see we're actually making a difference.
The story of your massive wiping out of a whole huge social media following of yours has struck me as being about something even bigger: the ability to be wise enough, at various points in our lives, to put old things behind us and pivot to something new. The fact is, that UNLESS you throw away the old, you'll be hampered in getting to the new. At every turn in my life, I've struggled with the unwillingness to do that. Each time I have, it's been wrenching, but in the end, liberating.
Yes Karine, and it's been hard to throw away a lot of the old stuff for me over the years, especially when it's helping me pay my bills. Quitting Medium was a really tough moment for me, and I wish it never would've come to that, but I had to in the name of evolving. It has paid off for me to go full-time Substack, but there were many months where I wasn't sure if this was going to work. It's hard making a big change.
In my role as a social media influencer, I’ve had to operate with a smaller audience and fix privacy settings. This has been mostly a part time job in maintaining various social media platforms.
I’m currently writing on topics to reform our digital habits by changing our mindset and reforming our digital health. Feeling too like I’m shouting into the wind. Especially as I use social media to complain about social media💨
1. Opened this because subject looked intriguing (and because I tend to open anything you post).
2. Understood that your travails justified your closing the page.
3. Agreed with the "can't change any minds" notion.
4. Trying to decide, for some time now, whether to post my (important and correct, of course) opinions. Having posted a lot of entertaining (I hope) but innocuous stuff, I now must evaluate the duty to weigh in against the futility and the aggravation. Your tale is pushing me, sadly, in the direction of keeping silent. "Never pass up an opportunity to keep your mouth shut"--Will Rogers.
I need to write a follow up to this, then, Chuck. I think becoming dissuaded by speaking my mind on Facebook is largely just an isolated incident for me. Filipinos are self-proclaimed VERY proud people, which is both amazing and frustrating, and my experience creating content there was so polarizing at times that I just threw in the towel. The amount of times I've gotten a bad response to something I've written, though, is pretty small. I'd say my experience here is not typical of your average experience online.
Have you considered that the resistance specifically to your influence effort had a significant basis in nationality? I am much more likely to trust my neighbor arguing and dissenting opinion than I am somebody from far away, even if that person far away is far more persuasive. We tend to trust who we know, and who looks like us.
That could be the case but the only thing is is that they actually put my opinion on a pedestal, it seems, because I was a white foreigner. It seems they valued my opinion way more than the opinions of their fellow countrymen when I was saying a lot of good things about their country. I feel like because of that, they really reacted strongly when I started offering fair criticism because they valued my opinion even more, even though valuing my opinion more than someone who's actually from their country because of my skin color is a bit ridiculous.
I understand the emotion in saying goodbye to a large social media identity. But not half a million. My travel blog group had just over 6000 when I sold the trade name and socials. It cut like a knife writing my goodbye post, too! It was the end of an era for me.
Did it feel good as well for you, Kristi? I found that after I deleted my page it felt like a figurative turning of the page. I felt free to go off and do new things, and that was exciting for me. I wonder what your experience was.
It felt SO much the same for me. I retired that blog in 2019 but it took me til 2023 to sell the assets. So I had a loooong time to mull it over and when I finally did it? I felt like a new human with a new identity!
I thought I'd go back to the Facebook page and troll what the new owner is doing but not once have I felt compelled. It was as if I washed my hands completely and simply walked away.
Facebook and Zuck have become increasingly evil in recent years. To watch Zuck dismiss enabling pedophiles while squashing freedom of speech on political topics find any video of his multiple appearances before US Congress. I left all Meta that I had Facebook, Instagram, and Messenger and suddenly the spying ads from Google and other browsers are actually more aligned with who I am and not with Zuck's plan for me. Substack is producing a higher quality of interaction overall and I hope we can keep it that way.
Love this: "I’ll stick to writing, and fill my day with butterflies, rainbows, and whiskers on kittens." Thaniks for trying on social media ... I hate to think you're right, but fear you are.
I understand completely. We have hundreds of whale and dolphin deaths up and down the East coast due to industrial surveying and building of ocean wind turbines. There’s no debate on causality— but there is debate. The science is there but denied because it’s a partisan issue now. The previous administration placed a moratorium on offshore wind. The current administration lifted it. I tried making people aware on my Instagram and got a lot of haters- I blocked them all and realized I can’t control politics. It’s a dirty money game I’d rather not play.
Hi Tom! I'm a Filipino. I'm sorry my countrymen treated you badly. Doc Adam, an Australian doctor who made a YouTube channel to bring a change on Filipinos' approach to health (which is still anchored on folk medicine), was also bashed. The Filipina quack doctor he debunked filed a lawsuit against him, and it cost Doc Adam so much money. I'm saying this because the antiintellectualism in the Philippines runs so deep it's hard to uproot even when confronted with truth and facts. I tried to love my country. I served 8 years as a public high school teacher in my country, I realized I can't make a change. Even the education system is corrupt. I moved on and moved out. Best decision ever. Philippines will always be the sick man of Asia.
The biggest problem with politics is that it’s heavily related to age and personality. Debate is also the art of winning an argument. So it’s almost inevitable to end up in a conflict.
Sprinkle on top of that a lack of data while discussing policies and we have a recipe for explosive emotions completely based on opinions and not rooted in reality.
I was very interested in learning different ideologies on the right and the left a couple of years ago. But I eventually stopped because those discussions usually barely move the needle or bring change.
From my observations, either business or working on policies that would be implemented bring some action.
So sorry to hear you had to go through this and I hope it didn’t affect you too much for too long.
What we know of Facebook's algorithms suggests it's probably not a good vehicle for changing people's minds because the algorithms keep feeding people more of the same, thus reinforcing whatever their opinions were in the first place. A dissenting voice might be visible but would be quickly drowned out by the bulk of contrary material being delivered. One can conceivably find and motivate like-minded people, but changing people's minds? The system isn't built for that. I suspect most social media isn't. I confess that I've kept my author page (which has "only" 55,000 followers), but I generally stay away from the political, my goal being to ultimately convert followers into fans that might buy my books. I support political causes by talking to people I know and contributing to causes in which I believe. You're certainly right about FB not being a good vehicle for changing political opinions.
Good post, although I’ve never understood why people claim people won’t change their mind on social media. I have done so many times because of facts someone shared.
You're one of the good ones, MaryClare. I guess people like you just get drowned out amongst the tidal wave of dissenting opinions and meanness that it gets hard for us creators to see we're actually making a difference.
The story of your massive wiping out of a whole huge social media following of yours has struck me as being about something even bigger: the ability to be wise enough, at various points in our lives, to put old things behind us and pivot to something new. The fact is, that UNLESS you throw away the old, you'll be hampered in getting to the new. At every turn in my life, I've struggled with the unwillingness to do that. Each time I have, it's been wrenching, but in the end, liberating.
Yes Karine, and it's been hard to throw away a lot of the old stuff for me over the years, especially when it's helping me pay my bills. Quitting Medium was a really tough moment for me, and I wish it never would've come to that, but I had to in the name of evolving. It has paid off for me to go full-time Substack, but there were many months where I wasn't sure if this was going to work. It's hard making a big change.
In my role as a social media influencer, I’ve had to operate with a smaller audience and fix privacy settings. This has been mostly a part time job in maintaining various social media platforms.
I’m currently writing on topics to reform our digital habits by changing our mindset and reforming our digital health. Feeling too like I’m shouting into the wind. Especially as I use social media to complain about social media💨
I'm taking a look now, Audra, at your writing. :)
Brave move. Thank you for sharing your journey
I have deleted my Facebook and Instagram accounts. It’s liberating!
1. Opened this because subject looked intriguing (and because I tend to open anything you post).
2. Understood that your travails justified your closing the page.
3. Agreed with the "can't change any minds" notion.
4. Trying to decide, for some time now, whether to post my (important and correct, of course) opinions. Having posted a lot of entertaining (I hope) but innocuous stuff, I now must evaluate the duty to weigh in against the futility and the aggravation. Your tale is pushing me, sadly, in the direction of keeping silent. "Never pass up an opportunity to keep your mouth shut"--Will Rogers.
I need to write a follow up to this, then, Chuck. I think becoming dissuaded by speaking my mind on Facebook is largely just an isolated incident for me. Filipinos are self-proclaimed VERY proud people, which is both amazing and frustrating, and my experience creating content there was so polarizing at times that I just threw in the towel. The amount of times I've gotten a bad response to something I've written, though, is pretty small. I'd say my experience here is not typical of your average experience online.
Have you considered that the resistance specifically to your influence effort had a significant basis in nationality? I am much more likely to trust my neighbor arguing and dissenting opinion than I am somebody from far away, even if that person far away is far more persuasive. We tend to trust who we know, and who looks like us.
That could be the case but the only thing is is that they actually put my opinion on a pedestal, it seems, because I was a white foreigner. It seems they valued my opinion way more than the opinions of their fellow countrymen when I was saying a lot of good things about their country. I feel like because of that, they really reacted strongly when I started offering fair criticism because they valued my opinion even more, even though valuing my opinion more than someone who's actually from their country because of my skin color is a bit ridiculous.
I understand the emotion in saying goodbye to a large social media identity. But not half a million. My travel blog group had just over 6000 when I sold the trade name and socials. It cut like a knife writing my goodbye post, too! It was the end of an era for me.
Did it feel good as well for you, Kristi? I found that after I deleted my page it felt like a figurative turning of the page. I felt free to go off and do new things, and that was exciting for me. I wonder what your experience was.
It felt SO much the same for me. I retired that blog in 2019 but it took me til 2023 to sell the assets. So I had a loooong time to mull it over and when I finally did it? I felt like a new human with a new identity!
I thought I'd go back to the Facebook page and troll what the new owner is doing but not once have I felt compelled. It was as if I washed my hands completely and simply walked away.
Facebook and Zuck have become increasingly evil in recent years. To watch Zuck dismiss enabling pedophiles while squashing freedom of speech on political topics find any video of his multiple appearances before US Congress. I left all Meta that I had Facebook, Instagram, and Messenger and suddenly the spying ads from Google and other browsers are actually more aligned with who I am and not with Zuck's plan for me. Substack is producing a higher quality of interaction overall and I hope we can keep it that way.
Love this: "I’ll stick to writing, and fill my day with butterflies, rainbows, and whiskers on kittens." Thaniks for trying on social media ... I hate to think you're right, but fear you are.
I understand completely. We have hundreds of whale and dolphin deaths up and down the East coast due to industrial surveying and building of ocean wind turbines. There’s no debate on causality— but there is debate. The science is there but denied because it’s a partisan issue now. The previous administration placed a moratorium on offshore wind. The current administration lifted it. I tried making people aware on my Instagram and got a lot of haters- I blocked them all and realized I can’t control politics. It’s a dirty money game I’d rather not play.
Hi Tom! I'm a Filipino. I'm sorry my countrymen treated you badly. Doc Adam, an Australian doctor who made a YouTube channel to bring a change on Filipinos' approach to health (which is still anchored on folk medicine), was also bashed. The Filipina quack doctor he debunked filed a lawsuit against him, and it cost Doc Adam so much money. I'm saying this because the antiintellectualism in the Philippines runs so deep it's hard to uproot even when confronted with truth and facts. I tried to love my country. I served 8 years as a public high school teacher in my country, I realized I can't make a change. Even the education system is corrupt. I moved on and moved out. Best decision ever. Philippines will always be the sick man of Asia.
I feel you. Such a big amount of negative comments, has for sure a bad influence on your sleep. Stay healthy and enjoy life. Greeting from Vienna
You probably did the right thing. People come on there to argue because they're right and you're wrong. Well done for stepping away.
The biggest problem with politics is that it’s heavily related to age and personality. Debate is also the art of winning an argument. So it’s almost inevitable to end up in a conflict.
Sprinkle on top of that a lack of data while discussing policies and we have a recipe for explosive emotions completely based on opinions and not rooted in reality.
I was very interested in learning different ideologies on the right and the left a couple of years ago. But I eventually stopped because those discussions usually barely move the needle or bring change.
From my observations, either business or working on policies that would be implemented bring some action.
So sorry to hear you had to go through this and I hope it didn’t affect you too much for too long.