HAE - The *REAL* (only?) Benefit of Social Media

A billion years ago, when we used something called a BBS, I realized immediately what absolute magic I had at my fingertips. Suddenly, I didn't have to have "the only 3 conversations" I was having living up in Maine.

1. Van Halen vs Led Zeppelin
2. Camaro vs Mustang
3. Will the Red Sox ever win a World Series?

This was it. You could talk about the weather or this. But then came the BBS, and I could log onto a computer server with forum software running, and find people who were into the far more important questions: Can Superman beat the Hulk? Star Wars vs Trek. You know. Vital philosophical interactions.

Social Media: The Best Of It

At its very best, social media allows us to validate the burning question we have more often than we would ever care to imagine: Has Anyone Else. As in, "Has anyone else ever heard a song that makes your heart squeeze and you love it so much, even if the actual words and meaning of the song aren't exactly meant to be emotional?"

HAE - has anyone else - is the best of social media. I never knew the first thing about furries, for instance. But there it is on YouTube: a full documentary. And when you come to the end of it, there are parts of what they're into that stripped of the specifics, you might also feel: alien, not right in your own body, yearning for a different reality, etc.

My point is this: the best of social media allows us to find like-minded people. I love mill towns. I love photography. I love music. I'm a writer. I like technology. On and on. Those groups, those tribes, are all over the internet waiting to find each other.

Has Anyone Else

No matter how individualistic we might wish we felt, we do pause to look around. We do wonder if we're the only person experiencing this reality. For instance, all the times where we feel something is crazy going on, we worry that we're the only one noticing. That's a powerful sentiment, isn't it? Wait: the state of US politics is WHAT???? See. That's one of those "has anyone else" moments because we're looking to validate our point of view.

This is how humans function.

And yet, this leads to the worst part of the Social web: confirmation bias. Social media sites feed us like-minded content because what they need more than anything else at all is more view/read/listen time. They sell our attention to advertisers by being able to boast how long you're spending on their site.

No matter the site (including LinkedIn), you tell the platform what you like, what you want more of, what you'll spend time absorbing. You're looking for a blend of "this is new" but also "this is more of the same stuff that I love." Your Facebook, your TikTok, your whatever all work that way. That's why they exist. (This isn't a negative statement. It just is.)

So Why Is HAE a Benefit?

I think the only real benefit and value of social networks is that you can connect with people who are into what you're into, and you can commune over the things you think are cool. You want to watch people forage in the woods for wild foodstuffs? Cool. You want to see people turn school buses into homes? Awesome. Shipping container homes? Cool. Retro video games? Awesome.

It's a benefit because we can select the thing we really want to give our time to instead of just eating what's in front of us. I grew up with there being three major TV channels and a few lesser ones. When cable TV showed up, the option for more potential entertainment came, but that was all really gatekept by media companies still.

Only when the wide open internet came did I get what I really wanted. Blogs, YouTube, all the social platforms - this opened up a world where whatever I want to sink into and immerse myself in is there.

I like that we can shape the world we want. I watched a documentary last night about Campbell Addy, fashion photographer and artist. Never heard of him before. What a rich story.

What I love is that I live in a world where you don't have to want to check that out. I don't have to watch your show about the best bass fishing spots. (I grew up fishing for trout and it's a totally different thing, I tell you.) See? We can connect with people who have ALSO felt what we feel and want what we want.

One Great Way to Sum It Up

This video is about 7 minutes long. It's a speech that comes at the end of the most recent AJR concert (my youngest son and I saw this live in Boston the other night - last night of the tour). It's a powerful story. Worth all your time.

Being there was one of the most powerful HAE experiences I've had in a while. Not mine. But I could feel my kid experiencing it. And I loved that 23,000 people in that room that night had some things in common.

Maybe you'll feel that way after checking out the speech.

Or not.

What's YOUR thing?

Chris...