Geert Lovink’s “The Social Media Abyss”

The concept of “the social media abyss” refers to the new social norm. We are living in a predisposed world filled with information used for big platforms to make a profit.

What does this mean?

The internet started off as a world of possibilities. Now, people reside on a few apps owned by a few amount of companies. Before money came into the equation, platforms did not always dictate what information we saw. We were able to post what we wanted and circulate our media. This concept is now dying. Media is being fed to us whether it is what we want to see or not.

What is going on?

Massive companies like Facebook, Amazon, and more are centralizing and monetizing how media is being spread. They have already determined what we are going to see and when we will see it. They have created their own view and are distributing it to us. Rather than allowing us to understand the information we see they are doing that for us. This new media has brought us ease but are we benefiting from it? We are being fed information. We are lacking the ability to understand and participate in events because we cannot do so purposefully Before being able to understand this, we need to call this what it is — platform capitalism. Platforms are capitalizing and monetizing media for nothing other than their benefit. Social media now lacks the crucial part of its name: social.

Is social media still social?

With the addition of these platforms the possibility of a “social” media no longer exists. Social refers to the idea of a messy public. It refers to the idea of spreadability and diversity. We can no longer be a class of people and have interpersonal connections to accomplish things. This was stripped from us when big companies decided to take over this choice. We lose social interactions in replacement for a screen.

What to do?

Be curious. We need to ask questions about what we are viewing. How is the media being shared. Is it right? Is it ethical? Curate our own media avoiding big businesses that dictate our media.

Acknowledge that these capitalistic platforms are curating our media for the sake of centralization and monetization. We need to see it ourselves before we can allow ourselves to try and find alternative solutions and change the way we read and use media.