So Facebook was down for about six hours today. It was a nice chance to focus on some music, write, and hang out on other social media. And it was also nice to know that something unexpected was hitting ol' Zuck in the wallet. It was a good reminder that (1) Facebook is a goddamn monopoly and (2) diversity where you put your media and back up, back up, back up everything, least your magnum opus disappears overnight (RIP mp3.com)
But while a lot of folks were celebrating, some of the celebration reeked a bit of "why can't everyone live off the grid in the forest?" There are certainly logistics concerns, like how this impacted communication for both rural America and abroad and also vital groups such as mutual aid groups (shoutout to EKY Mutual Aid!) But those very valid concerns aside, let's aim for the thesis. Why not just obliterate social media and go back to the good ol' days?
As a geriatric Millennial, I'm here to tell you the good ol' days are a lot of smoke and mirrors. Sometimes I miss being able to not doomscroll, but then I remember how clunky web 1.0 was. It was damn impossible to share visual or audio art unless you had your own website, which was incredibly cost prohibitive. Social media really leveled the playing field on that one. If I wanted music, I could either download a midi of the Mission Impossible theme, or wait six hours (not an exaggeration) to illegally download a song that may or may not actually be a virus. And for all the decrying of how stupid Tik Tok is, one of the highlights of our online experience circa 1999 was Hamster Dance. There's something to be said about learning a coding language to get your message out. There's also something to be said about not having that particular gate kept so you can focus on the actual message.
I did have my own sense of community online in the 90s/early 2000s, from a few select newsgroups (basically a participatory email newsletter), Livejournal, and my own website (the last thanks in part to my buddy Kara, who let me piggyback off her domain). These really helped me find a larger community in the zine and tape trading worlds. I love analog media and think it is vital to the survival of art, but I also operate under a bit of privilege being able to afford to make analog versions of and pay for the release of my art.
Social Media and web 2.0 are vital for three groups: disabled folks, folks in rural places, and queer/trans folks. I can honestly speak to all three, as the internet was a saving grace to me even in its caterpillar stage. Although I haven't used it in years, Tumblr was vital in me figuring out my sexuality and gender. Hearing from folks that felt like me and learning labels for things that I thought were quirks or defects may have saved my life. Even if it is well-meaning, a cry of "get off the internet and to your local LGBT center" doesn't mean shit when your town doesn't even have a grocery store, let alone an LGBT center. Or if nothing is within walking distance and you don't have a car. Or if you do have an LGBT center, but it's inaccessible to wheelchairs.
Don't get me wrong, I'm the last person to shill for a billion dollar corporation, nor am I any big fan of Facebook. I'm just saying most nostalgia for the Good Ol' Days tends to rosy coat it and overlook whom it may have been the Not-So-Good Ol' Days for. As we march forward and dare to dream of a post-capitalism world, let's not leave our most vulnerable populations in the dust to do so. Sure, there needs to be an alternative for the functional things Facebook does, but until we get that alternative and teach it to our not-so-tech savvy friends and neighbors, Facebook is what we've got. It was a nice break and an even more important wake up call.
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