I don’t want you to read this

Clicking on and reading this post proves I have been successful, and it also means that you have failed. You have failed to control what you are scrolling through, what you click on and what you read.

Let me explain. Everything that you see on the internet, social media and apps, is controlled by an algorithm which has a singular purpose. To get you watching. The primary objective is to capture your attention for long enough for you to click on something. Once you clicked, the secondary objective is to keep you on as long as possible.

You are being manipulated. You are no longer in control of what you see, and I can prove it to you. Catchy titles, intriguing first sentences and unexpected visuals are what got you to click. Curiosity and shock will keep you going.

Its ok, now you can click off to something else, you stayed here for 10 seconds, so I get rewarded by the algorithm.

This is the whole point. Getting clicks, getting views, generating interest. Interestingly it does not matter whether the content is generated by humans or AI. The Dead Internet Theory suggests that soon (or already) everything you see online is a mirror room of AI generated slop, reflecting itself in endless variations.

The internet does not have to die through AI repetition, it is dead already. It does not matter whether the creator is human or a bot. What you see, when you see it, how you see it, is all being endlessly and continuously manipulated. And, you aren’t even interested. You watched something saucy for 10 seconds. I got my click and earned my reward.

Hold on there Dr Yannis, you may think. If you figured this out already, why are you a willing participant?

The reason is that my mission is to produce content for people to read (I am an academic). Since hardly anyone reads anything anymore (certainly most students don’t), I need to shift my content to other media. But how am I achieving anything if I produce stuff that nobody watches or listens to. What is the point of it all? How can I justify continuing to work, write and produce if there is no audience?

The answer is to take the fight to the algorithm and trick you into clicking and staying on. If you are still here, by God I won! But as my stats suggest nobody reads beyond the first 300 words, I might as well stop here.

Just before I do, let me reiterate why I went from pre-recorded lectures, to animations, to music videos embellished by inappropriately clad women. You watch, I get an audience, I pray to the Algo Gods. Now put the phone down and enjoy 2025!

Dr Ioannis Glinavos