Should You Give Up Social Media?

Do you feel SAFE online?  Do you feel MANIPULATED?  CONTROLLED?

I watched a documentary last night that has me questioning EVERYTHING and makes me want to give up everything I do online.

I’ve taken “breaks” from social media.  I’ve tried deleting the apps from my phone to avoid the temptation.  Last year I went a week.  It was like giving up sugar.  It was incredibly hard, the cravings were unbearable, and my head hurt from the detox.

I wish I could say I was kidding.  I HATE that it’s so hard to quit.  I HATE that something keeps calling me back.

And after watching this documentary on Netflix last night – I understand why.

According to “The Social Dilemma” – we are being manipulated.  BIG TIME.  Entire teams of engineers are constantly at work.  Their entire job is to use your psychology against you.

Everything you’re doing online is being watched, tracked, monitored, recorded and all that data is being used against us.  Controlling us.

Making big money for the companies and causing so many problems in our world.

Scary, right?

They are designing it to tempt us and to get us to engage.  The more we scroll, like, comment, and post – the more data they collect on us.

The more data they collect the more money they make.

They are tricking us. Deceiving us.

Rewarding us with likes and notifications.

We’re addicted.  And it’s all done on purpose.

The technology that CONNECTS us also CONTROLS us.

SCARY.

“If everyone’s entitled to their own facts, there’s no need for people to interact”

“We have less control over who we are and what we really believe”

“…technology creates mass chaos, loneliness, more polarization, election hacking, more inability to focus on the real issues – “we’re toast”
checkmate on humanity. “

 

I’ve joked about giving up Facebook in the past. Mostly because I realized just how much time I WASTE scrolling, scrolling, scrolling.   I knew I would miss those posts from my family and close friends.  I’d miss sharing “life” with them.

Now, I wonder.

Each of us are fed different “feeds”.    Strange to think about isn’t it?

To think there is something manipulating what we see.

What are your thoughts on this? Have you watched?

Send me an email and let me know what you think – cbuchanan@blackburnradio.com

Categorised in: Afternoons

This post was written by Carrie Buchanan