Why We’re Still Trapped on Twitter

[@TheAdamConover]

Get the facts with USAFacts: bit.ly/3uw1LNi Support the show on Patreon: www.patreon.com/adamconover See Adam on tour: www.adamconover.net/tourdates/

[@Exiled.New.Yorker]

We need to make Google a Public service, run off a island with no national ties. Twitter we can do without, but if Google keeps on this track, we're going to have a LOT of manual rerouting to do.

[@zacharythomas8617]

You're literally stumping for Fascism. Fascist.

[@thethree60five]

'We are stuck'... unless of course, Government did its job and regulated and did things like repeal "the 26 words" in 230 to make _Twitter accountable as a publisher_ . You know, that thing America loved to do in 267 previous acts of foreign intervention in other countries... "national security and American interests" to not have a foreigners controlling American.... interests. Literally a '6 seconds abs' solution. But tell people they have to remain the victims. What does that make you?

[@justicewatch4602]

Folks want Twitter without Elon. But the competition is trying to reinvent twitter. They need to make a new platform just like twitter, call it Chirpers or Tweeter. But make sure it's super easy to transition ands user can easily pass through their comments from twitter to the new platform and back so it "feel" like they are never leaving twitter.

[@thethree60five]

@@justicewatch4602 yes, look at the timeliness on KZbin is very much looking like a tweet feed, features are starting to mirror it. YT is starting with the videos and moving toward a social network, Twix is trying to move to video social, obviously for eventual ad inserts like YT.

[@ShaunTheCrazyOne]

The thing is, when Twitter says they've only lost 5% of their users, they're only counting deleted accounts. I didn't delete my account I just stopped using it.

[@CainXVII]

Same. I think this is mostly a case of bad statistics.

[@zaco-km3su]

More like lies.

[@zaco-km3su]

@@CainXVII Not bad, convenient. It's lies.

[@btarczy5067]

The „dead (or inactive) subscriber“ issue inflates internet numbers everywhere. Technically half the world’s population is probably still „on Facebook“.

[@dffdsbt]

Same but mine won't let me even log in anymore. Won't recognize my username...

[@TheNeoVid]

The metaphor I most like for people staying on Twitter is "I can't leave this quicksand, it's where all my friends are drowning!"

[@Echo81Rumple83]

Too bad most of them left when muskarse took over (still in contact with one via texts and Discord, so there's that), and one whom i've had street therapy with, who I've encountered on Twitter through another mutual friend, has most likely went out to catch the bus. I cried for him as I told him I would if he ever decided to do that.

[@SkepticCyclist]

I never post there anymore, but I keep mine for only two reasons: 1) It's the only site where I get updates on things like Dodgers and National Weather Service 2) In case someone copies my account and uses my handle (which they have done before,) I have my existing account to show the fake one is fake.

[@JE-zl6uy]

I just left and asked folks who were on it and I had known on it, for their other contact information 😊

[@apexnext]

Lol that is a funny saying! 😂 Did everyone not watch the video? Only 5% of Twitter users actually left. Yet that entire 5% is here in Adam's comments. 😮

[@gennafer]

@@apexnext Well those of us that left are the ones wondering why they are trapped 😆the ones still trapped know why and all their excuses were confirmed in this video.

[@BoogerDad]

Fun fact about Prince, he changed his named to a symbol to break free from labels that owned anything he created as "Prince", so he changed his name to a symbol and started producing music independently without having to pay dividends to the record label that was trying to control him creatively. It's actually a dope story and makes Prince even more punk rock than I ever knew

[@kylezo]

Yea this was a shitty joke considering he's dead, was an absolute legend, and changed his name for incredible important reasons that you explained

[@Pikachu2Ash]

@@kylezo It's not in poor taste anymore because Prince been dead for a long time now. Move on. Dead people don't care who mocks them because they are fucking dead.

[@gregmark1688]

I always thought the best thing was that we could eventually refer to him as "The Artist Formerly Known As The Artist Formerly Known As Prince."

[@gregmark1688]

Well, that and Side 3 of 1999. ;)

[@TadRaunch]

Musk does not deserve to be mentioned in the same breath as Prince.

[@LoganLovell]

One of the better unintended consequences of them changing the logo and name of Twitter is that now when my lizard brain gets the urge to check Twitter, it forgets that the little blue birdy isn't there anymore and assumes I just don't have that app anymore and I carry on with my day. The branding change has actively made me less likely to use the app

[@jtse09]

i've gone through this same exact thing you've described. the x logo is really able to do that to me too

[@hockeygrrlmuse]

That's so funny. Not the case for me as I deleted the app (it helps that my phone is very old and doesn't have much storage space; I'm almost dreading what the inevitable upgrade will do to my willpower). Do you also get the momentary confusion when someone says "X" in passing and you don't know what they're talking about until they say "Twitter"?

[@savagesarethebest7251]

I am always confused about why I would have installed the X11 windowing system on my phone.. I have used a tablet as an external screen for my laptop, but the phone is kinda to small to read on when it is on the desktop 😅

[@drippingwax]

I think that I created a Twitter account 10 years ago to look around, but left after seconds, and only went back when I got hired by a bakery and the owner's wife told everyone that they had a Twitter page, but they absolutely did not, so I created one, and ran it until they laid me off. I received three messages from local organizations that I followed, hoping to bring attention to the bakery, but I deleted everything when I lost my job. I just don't use it, but every single article has at least one tweet and one mention of the pathetic site desperately trying to get us to call them X. When I see the logo, I automatically try to close it.

[@Richard-Vlk]

I realized that the new "black X" logo reminds me of fascist swastika. So i call it "Musk's swastika" and adjust my feelings accordingly whenever i see it.

[@JZekis]

Twitter for years punched above its weight as a social media hub specifically because it became the preferred social media for journalists, comics, celebrities and politicians. The groups that really need that extended reach. Unfortunately those groups have grown too dependent on that infrastructure and can't quit.

[@michaelj.beglinjr.2804]

Sure they can, they just won't. That's on them.

[@Sustain.Able.Future]

Yes they can quit. All they need to do is say, “You can find me ____”.

[@JZekis]

@@Sustain.Able.Future If you've built Twitter as an income stream it's not really that easy though most of the people I know who use it for business purposes are diversifying where they post because it's growing so unreliable.

[@majortom331]

@@Sustain.Able.Future only like 1% of your fanbase moves with you.

[@BloodyAngel88]

Honestly, the only reason I'm still on Twibber is because some of my favorite people are still there. The moment they're gone? Bai bai, birdy.

[@peterpodgorski]

I'm literally watching this to understand why you all still use Twitter... it was incredibly easy to stop, really...

[@testtalon]

Same!

[@Joel.Garrison]

Same 😂... I thought it was purely journalist only left...

[@outerheaven2k7]

i sadly have no real life friends or family all my connections are facebook or twitter too old to find friends really just sadly pathetic, ill just go down with the ship - i know

[@vexorian]

It was sad at first, but it's increasingly just infuriating. Elon turned it into gab with more steps but these people can't stop going there. It's not an "essential tool" y'all are just junkies and a bit too comfortable feeding a fash's ego.

[@EroticInferno]

@@outerheaven2k7never too old if you’re still breathing ❤ wish peace and love, you’ll find your people if you find your irl place. That’s the issue… there are very few good places to even hang out with let alone meet people _except_ online..

[@JillLulamoon]

The greatest trick Twitter pulled was convincing the world it needs Twitter.

[@williamhutton2126]

This deserves to be pinned.

[@sumit92artist]

Facts!

[@bluester7177]

Not the world, mostly the US and Japan.

[@John_Smith_60]

Why does the beginning of your comment remind me of something? 🤔

[@crazyluigi6664]

Same thing can be said for Facebook also.

[@jtrain9926]

The user rate declining is actually much worse than it seems on paper. Social media apps need to be growing at a steady rate. What the 5% decline is not showing is the number of accounts that remain but have become inactive (like mine) where people aren't using it or engaging, but can't be bothered to delete their accounts.

[@supersaiyankirby]

Also only losing 5% doesn't mean the other 95% are using the app the same amount. I'm interested to see if the remaining users have decreased the overall time spent online. I know i personally still check it daily but went from like 2 hours scrolling to maybe 15 mins or less.

[@devonleblanc9152]

Come back to this comment, id like to have a chat about how wrong you are.

[@monstermaker73]

​@@devonleblanc9152 Sounds pretty solid to me. That's just basic economics that you seem to love to ignore.

[@HiSodiumContent]

Trapped in a very literal sense. I deactivated my account that I never used months ago and it's still active. I strongly encourage anyone in the EU or CA who has requested deletion to double check their account and to report non-deletion to whatever regulatory body can hit them with fines. The penalties are severe and pursuing action is your civic duty to help those of us without protections.

[@Irobert1115HD]

actually thats the most likely reason why it still looks so strong: musk lowered the bar of entry for the bots (he talked about getting rid of them until he got informed that most of his followers are bots).

[@rigpa10]

you can just stop posting on twitter - sounds like you do not want to leave

[@angelalewis4213]

I deactivated the day that asshat walked in with a sink.

[@throatgorge2]

What I thought would be fun to do is if a bunch of us who don't like twitter, or who tried it once and didn't like it and never use it, if we all agreed on a certain time and date, and we all log on and we all post EVERYTHING we can think of that goes against twitter policy (except stuff we could end up in prison for posting... threats, CP, etc.,) and ALL GET BANNED on the same day. THEN I would finally have a use for Twitter! Bruising Elon Musk's ego. "Hey 7 million people just got banned today for writing offensive stuff and posting porn-- and they all did it on Valentine's Day 2024!" That's my fantasy, and the only thing that keeps me from trying to get my account banned RIGHT NOW just to quit getting poked and prodded like a beast of burdan that collapsed and didn't get up since 2006 or whatever year they started that garbage website.

[@devilslamp7306]

@@rigpa10 For many artists and other creators (whether bloggers, comedians, commentators, whatever), Twitter was a way to share their creations and gain patrons and customers. Many people still use Twitter to find and connect with artists and their art. Leaving your old tweets up still gains ad revenue for Twitter, and the only companies still advertising on Twitter are the ones who aren't bothered by having their ads displayed next to neo-nazi content.

[@Alex-cw3rz]

3:55 don't forget the other reason they fired him as CEO is because of his mind-boggling mismanagement, incompetence and his poor coding ability, which had to be rewritten after he left. However because he had stock in PayPal, when it was sold he made hundreds of millions and is the only reason he could do what he did today.

[@lizardguyNA]

Seems like every project he is involved in somehow has the same 1 problem, and it's him. Makes ya think, don't it?

[@ACAB.forcutie]

The problem is a system that rewards men like Musk

[@ryanlillie8469]

Stop mytholigizing him. He's from Money to begin with. He couldn't have got where he is if he didn't have daddy emerald

[@alben000]

@@ryanlillie8469 while this might be true, the fact is he had to say at some point this money goes here and this money goes there. If all the project he has put his money in are essential businesses of todays day and age, does it really matter if he comes from money? where im from there are alot of famous baseball players and athletes, those guys in a few years make fortunes 5 to 10 times of the total income of an average joe here, it is possible that miss manegment and bad desicion making will make a guy that has no right being broke, go broke. Im not saying that he a genious or that he deserves the praices he has, but i cant agree with the statement that money took him all the way to where he is (thou it did give him way more chances to fail than a normal person would) It certantly was a factor, but if he truly was as stupid as Adam says or some media portrais i doubt hed be where he is today.

[@doomsdayrabbit4398]

​​@@ryanlillie8469Not much mythology to speak of - you own enough stock that performs okay, you'd have millions too. Hell, with the kind of money he has access to, putting it in a normal savings account would net him millions a month. At a certain point, unless you are *literally* setting fire to your money, there's no way to lose.

[@YogiTheBearMan]

I’ve never used twitter. My only exposure is from the news when they treat a tweet like it’s news

[@devilslamp7306]

Many tweets ARE news. Do you have any idea how many journalists used Twitter to break news articles? Sure, a ton of them wrote for big name newspapers and linked their articles with a tweet, but plenty of journalists did a tweet as news was breaking, and then wrote an article about it. Twitter democratized news, for better or worse. When a conflict happened, video and reports appeared live from the people on the ground at the scene. Yes, some were fake, but it was easy enough to vet. Without Twitter, it's likely that certain cops in prison would never have even been disciplined for murdering someone. The entire Black Lives Matter movement was created on and spread through Twitter, especially during the protests, as people on the ground countered right-wing misinformation with live photos and videos, including the cops who burned down businesses and then blamed BLM for it. So, yes, many tweets were, in fact, news.

[@nerfherder4284]

Same. Never had a Facebook page either. YT comments are as social media as I get.✌🏻

[@BryceDixonDev]

Elon tried to name PayPal "X" and got kicked off by the board of directors. He named a car the "Model X" at a car company he bought because the naming the second model the "Model 3" was too straightforward, he likes "X," and has the comedic sense of a 12 year old. He founded an aeronautics company and named it "SpaceX" because: 1. It does space things; and 2. "X" He tried to name his child "X" and Grimes broke up with him. He's now renamed Twitter "X" because... he likes the letter "X."

[@tachobrenner]

He wanted to name the Model 3 "Model E", but Mercedes claimed rhat would be a trademark infringement.

[@Skag_Sisyphus]

I think he's a 10 year old boy who thinks putting an x where it doesn't belong makes it Xtreme! and kool!

[@GrannyBender]

The models are called "S", "3" and "X". SpaceX also probably because it kind of sounds like sex. That guy have the same humour as a 12 years old kid.

[@reallyman6502]

he really IS Real-life Bob Page

[@CC3GROUNDZERO]

Does he like the letter X because it resembles a swastika?

[@johnserranovoices]

Seems like a lot of people don't know that many artists including animators, graphic designers, musicians, producers, and voice actors (like me) need Twitter to find work. That's the only reason I'm still on Twitter, and why many freelancers are still using it. Once the producers leave, then the artists will. But they haven't. So we haven't.

[@nikolaivista920]

Maybe, just maybe it's time for you to make a career change! Think about what advanced A.I. will do to the Twitter world and to the internet artists world. Just a fair warning my guy!!

[@Caterfree10]

@@nikolaivista920fuck AI and all its art theft

[@Caterfree10]

AYUP. And I love following artists (primarily for fanworks), so that’s why I’m still on twitter.

[@maloxi1472]

@@nikolaivista920 If you're good at what you do, AI will only make you better. This will only improve once AGI is there. Don't fall for the trap of seeing yourself as a perpetual employee. That's what the people marketing for AI doom want

[@SmallGreenPlanetoid]

​@@nikolaivista920 I think you're missing the point that in order to run a business, you have to go to where the customers are. You don't just shut down your business because a new competitor shows up.

[@tamsinterror3520]

I've never had a Twitter account, so thank you for explaining why a lot of people are still highly attached to theirs.

[@brianmelendy1194]

They are weak willed.

[@KArchine]

Yeah, never had one. Never felt the need to be honest

[@larspeterthomsen9798]

Same. Saw it, thinking "this is dumb", and never looked back.

[@Iquey]

​​@@brianmelendy1194weak willed because ...... They dont want to manually off-board their 200+ friends and loose contacts stored on the cloud who also have their own 50-300+ friends and loose contacts stored on the cloud?

[@trekkiejunk]

Never had one, either. The site always came across as "Look at me! Please, look at me! I'll say and do anything stupid (or boring) just so someone looks at me!!"

[@sluggyyarvin]

As a non-Twitter user, it goes over my head why we need twitter at all.

[@MatthewTheWanderer]

I've never used Twitter and I feel the exact same way!

[@angel-ke9vs]

Me too I never understood the hype.

[@mysticangel000]

I started using during pandemic for live news, protest news, war news, and video fact checking out of war zones…. But its not worth the wading through the bs now

[@anthonyschwartz1084]

Yeah, it sounds weird how attached he is to an app

[@greenben3744]

But he told you... in the video... Anouncements from the president to tsunami warnings were better distributed by this app then the official sources. People were using it as their own personal website on the internet. Social interaction that is missing in an antisocial culture. You can meet and contribute to any number of smal to large projects on there. Be it a silly little conversation to writing or game projects. And most importantly at all, as a role playing tool. Social interaction with sock puppets dressed up as themselvs. Thats kind of important to people.

[@emanmodnar2]

What upsets me the most is I rely on twitter for local wildfire updates. The throttling of how many posts I could see from emergency response teams stressed me out really badly after four solid years of major fires.

[@nitewarden]

I actually dropped Twitter around the time the purchase went through last fall. It’s done wonders for my mental health.

[@nerfherder4284]

Good job 👍🏻 for reals

[@clintonspx1200]

Yeah I dropped it too at the same time want to bet elan still counts us as active users?

[@Shadowninja1200]

Same, It has been funny watching the dumpster fire rage even hotter everytime Elon pours more gasoline on the fire just because he can't help himself thinking everything he does is the greatest idea ever.

[@NanuqoftheNorth]

I deleted my Twitter account a few months after Elon bought the site and allowed many of the banned users to return.

[@ToneKneeParaSocial]

Yup. Elon got heater when I called him a hypocrite over cutting service to starlink service Ukraine in the middle of battles. Elon is lightweight super easy to get mad, it's pretty funny. Especially when you consider the type of racist billionaire he really is.

[@user-kh5hw9yc7u]

like that one guy who ruined my life by a link that lead to a child pornography site where they drug kids and do whatnotso twitter has already broken me, not only that but the exicution vids, suicide caught on cam, murder vids and so on that ive already seen there...

[@williamhutton2126]

We definitely DON'T need Twitter. I've never used it. I've never once felt like I was missing out on something. Especially knowledge.

[@sumit92artist]

Anyone who says they NEED twitter is an addict, simply put.

[@williamhutton2126]

@@sumit92artist That's a fact, my friend. I think Adam meant to say "He" needs it, not 'we'.

[@briankulesz9410]

I'm one of the 1% that never used Shitter. I also took it a step further and got rid of all social media accounts. I do maintain a LinkedIn account for my career being the only exception.

[@aylbdrmadison1051]

Always good to see other people who have not been groomed by the fash.

[@Craxin01]

Amen. I've never used it either.

[@PeregrineHawthorn]

This was a great watch as someone who exclusively uses tumblr. Twitter's changes made me go from 'I only occasionally go there when I'm linked there' to 'the links are all broken anyway so why bother'.

[@liammcnicholas918]

I left Twitter for Tumblr, and sure, it has its flaws, but it’s better than Twitter, oh wait, sorry, X.

[@brookeworm18]

at this point, we could have a hunger games of billionaire CEOs and it’d be a public service

[@nismo2070]

I'd pay to watch this.

[@ohiasdxfcghbljokasdjhnfvaw4ehr]

would anyone vote against this

[@fray3dendsofsanity]

@@ohiasdxfcghbljokasdjhnfvaw4ehr only the billionaires would. in a true democratic vote, they would lose overwhelmingly

[@swimmingmide]

What if we got a team or two of them together and they had to plan and execute a week long camping trip. They have to do it on their own with a reasonable budget, but if they get into trouble there is no bail out. Also make some essencial items way to expensive to actually use, but have alternatives available at a regular or even discounted price. Like make bottled water too expensive to reasonably use, but make a fountain cooler and iodine water treatment kits super cheap. Give them the tools to survive if they are actually smart.

[@WynneL]

@@greyecat Apropos has nil to do with it. Billionaires would agree to a contest of their egos, not torture.

[@JustOneAsbesto]

As someone who has never used Twitter; I *don't* think we need it. There are plenty of other ways to find out if a hurricane is going to eat your house. Like your phone screaming at you horribly.

[@kerlyenai]

Yeah, I agree. Never used it and don't/can't miss it.

[@BuckleysPants]

Twitter is one of the fastest ways to get news because it takes 2 seconds to post "hey a hurricane might be happening in your area" that the local News, youtube, and even emergency alerts on your phone can't keep up with. Twitter news has the speed of a bullet train, its 24/7, and its news that you want to hear about because it uses an algorithm, and so much more than any other option can't even offer you if they tried. Twitter is the best place for news and it sucks that a billionaire with nothing to lose is in charge of it.

[@recycleyourcar]

Agreed. I've never been more glad to have never used twitter (also never used tumblr, or watched those shows, but i still felt called out as a generational cusp baby)

[@lostbutfreesoul]

While I don't have need for it, I can understand why some people would. Nothing to do with being informed, it is the connections.... Which is why the dark side of Twitter isn't gong anywhere, alas.

[@jandraelune1]

The thing is there is no where else where all goverment offices all have an account and voice even down to the township lvl. Aswell no where else is there is a source where news of an event is posted as it happens unfiltered and live. You don't need to follow a user to see their content. This is the point, yes there is other sources you can see tailered news. This is also the location where internet service hosts posts information on their server status.

[@danp6897]

Twitter wouldn't let me delete my account. I had to just abandon it instead. I've heard that's a not uncommon issue, and I'm 100% certain that a deliberate company policy to prevent a mass exodus of users.

[@HiSodiumContent]

I deactivated months ago, it's still there. Anyone experiencing the same in the EU or CA needs to report the non-deletion to a regulatory body, as those areas have actual laws with severe penalties for such data/privacy mismanagement.

[@wallacewallaby5782]

Steve Martin (yes THAT Steve Martin) had the same problem and had to get in contact with Twitter to have them manually delete his account.

[@LevelUpLeo]

Yeah, that’s 5% number has got to be missing a large number of people who quit the site but didn’t delete their profiles for one reason or another.

[@MidnightAndLuna]

@@LevelUpLeothat’s exactly what I was going to say. That 5% is not accurate

[@sashabrown1796]

We really really need to catch up with social media. It has become our society, and it's all privately owned. This should TERRIFY everyone. We are at an existential crisis of information and if we don't figure out how to navigate it, both individually, and socially, we will continue to see inequity, and loss of the ability to discern the quality of information we take in.

[@danielduncan6806]

Your participation in social media is purely voluntary.

[@sashabrown1796]

@@danielduncan6806 In what way? How can an average person function in society currently without using, or being exposed to, the effects of social media?

[@alexthewrecker4666]

Even if you dont participate the effects of it are forced onto everyone. Take misinformation for example​@@danielduncan6806

[@ProtoMan0451]

@@danielduncan6806 your ignorance of modern society is too but apparently that doesnt stop you

[@rowancook4369]

I wonder if the "only losing 5% of its userbase" statistic is only counting people who deleted their accounts. Most people I know who stopped using Twitter just left, but never deleted their accounts. I know more people who have left than have stayed, other than artists who only use it out of necessity for marketing purposes.

[@violet6450]

Exactly! I havent used twitter for 4 years now, but didnt deleted my account

[@sd-ch2cq]

And people who felt forced to tweet once-a-month to keep their account active so their handle couldn't be given to some fraudster.

[@wallacewallaby5782]

I haven't left Twitter yet, but I've gone from wasting countless hours every week on it and checking statuses throughout the day, to just minutes every week. The site has become close to unusable.

[@catie5939]

I haven't been on Twitter in months and months and never deleted my account. I even still have the app bc the minute I delete it, I won't be able to log back into my account ever again. Because it's a hell app. So I'm off Twitter, I just haven't thrown out all it's stuff yet bc I'm not ready to admit it's over 😭💀

[@innocentrage1]

I can't even use it. If I log in it wants me to confirm using an old phone number I don't have. Not that I want to anyway

[@Alex-cw3rz]

M usk is the best example of the fact we don't live in a meritocracy

[@aylbdrmadison1051]

Cooperation > competition Capitalism is a multi-class hierarchical system of wealth distribution that massively favors the whims of the wealth elite Capitalists over all else. Including life itself.

[@disky01]

Just stop using it. I moved to Mastodon and I'm actually quite happy there, despite people rolling their eyes over it. I use social media less and when I do use it, I'm happier.

[@lizardguyNA]

It's a lot easier than people realize. Cohost is easy to find.

[@Jourichio]

I'm 38 and this video made me feel like I'm an out of touch geriatric. I thought Twitter was dumb when it first came out, always thought it was dumb, never used it, never relied on it for information, and just about all my friends are in the same boat. I have a hard time believing everything he's saying right now.

[@sahnie82]

Same here! I’m 35 and never liked it. 🤷‍♀️

[@ewill3435]

Heck, I'm 23 and I'm in the same boat! I've been decrying twitter, musky-boy, and the internet monopolization we're seeing since highschool, just to be told I'm overreacting. Well, there's a part of me who just wants to run through the streets saying "I told you so!", but the joy of vindication is lost when the thing you were always right about just so happens to be a tragedy that you're smack in the middle of...

[@stevesether]

You're not out of touch. You're just not an idiot. Most people I know aren't into Twitter and never were. I think I've known about 1 person that was into twitter about 10 years ago. She was one of those keyboard warrior, judgemental types that Twitter appeals to. "ZOMG!! I can scour twitter and find people I need to respond to and bandwagon in a twitter war! Sign me up!" I just see much of social media like smoking was in the 40s/50s/60s or so. During this period the adult smoking rate in the US was about 40-45%. My mother, born in 1939 once told me that when she grew up, she just assumed she'd smoke when she grew up. And yes, she did till about 1970 or so. That's how addiction works. It takes YEARS for people to change habbits, even when it's clear it's bad for 'em.

[@yesicanhearyouclemfandango]

100% with you there. Never really understood what was the big deal about it. Glad it's dying.

[@gerstein03]

Yeah I agree. I'm 20 and I've never been into twitter. I've always thought it was a stupid cesspool of chronically online doomscrollers. I'm fairly certain Twitter is a big part of why so many people nowadays think the world is in the shitter. Negativity spreads like wildfire and it's very easy for people who don't look up at the world around them to see that actually the world isn't fucked

[@barbararowley6077]

I’m one of the 5%. My country had some very serious and high profile IT security breaches around the time Musk slashed protections and moderators which was the last straw for me. I missed the people I used to interact with, but was able to break the addiction reasonably easily. I quite like having IRL time back, and am in several Discords with good communities. Having said all that I don’t think I’ll ever forgive Musk for what he did. Twitter was only a cesspool if you ignored the block option and didn’t put in the curating time.

[@PopeKingJoe]

I deleted my Twitter account a few months ago and it's one of the best decisions I've ever made.

[@Echo81Rumple83]

Deleted my app, but not my account for some reason. I do miss interacting with the other Homestar Runner fans on Strong Bad's Twitter feed, and it was essentially my newspaper while I ate breakfast at Boudine at 8 o'clock in the morning before going to work. I also miss that routine, since I'm no longer employed and Boudine now opens at a later time (prolly so they can clean their kitchen, restrooms and dining areas to prevent covid spread), and the last thing I wanted to check in the morning was promoted propaganda from PragerU about the dark side of transitioning :/

[@CourageOfMyConvictions]

@@eureka5699Consider diversifying your reasons for hating him, there are far many more than just that.

[@SpoopySquid]

I deleted my Twitter long before Musk came along. It was killing my mental health and I could feel the difference in just a few days

[@heatherbaker6983]

I joined Twitter many years ago because artists used it to drop tour dates and other info. After a month, I left because I didn't care about what the fans think. I just want the artists info and updates.

[@IdoMuffin]

And it's entirely possible to use the site for purely that purpose. At least, until they forced you to make an account just to browse around the damn thing.

[@hellhound1389]

I wouldn't even join for that because I hate concerts for one reason... PEOPLE

[@noname-dj7vj]

Same here. I used to use it to keep up with indie artists, but there's no point anymore

[@michellekaiser7634]

Spotify and Tidal should start a replacement that only lets people with enough fans post.

[@shoggothification]

I have never used Twitter or X and still use the Internet daily for information. Twitter is NOT a necessity. Yes it may be fun and informative at times but if you are only using Twitter for information you lose the ability to search the Internet yourself. Love you Adam!! So glad to see you!

[@CharleneCTX]

I live in an unincorporated area at the boundaries of three cities. That's eight Twitter accounts I follow for OEM and LEO info in my local area. Some of them post on Facebook, but FB is completely unreliable when it comes to timely, emergency information.

[@charlesgrove6905]

My guy that's not even close to how people consume news ever. We don't search it on an open web, its typically curated to some extent and collated into a single viewing session like radio, television, news articles. Its about the time it takes to consume and arrive. A news tweet with links to sources can be disseminated faster than even traditional written articles typically would have. Plus the additional on the ground reporting that can and does take place via that same platform. Those are inherent features that can't really be found elsewhere. Especially given the fragility of the trust in traditional news media like CNN/Fox/MSNBC/NYT/ect... currently only lends more credence to the authenticity of news found on Twitter which adds additional rapport for consumers through their mutuals. Its likely a heavily relied on tool for the nearly 1/4 billion users given their still continued usage of it even though obvious competitors have stepped in.

[@hellhound1389]

I'm only on KZbin for the videos. I never use anything else. I was on Facebook for 2 weeks and realized I have a real life and terminated my account

[@lenas6246]

bro wrote that comment from 2005@@charlesgrove6905

[@zachryder3150]

​@@charlesgrove6905 Credibility can't be found on news websites, but can be found on Twitter???

[@genzo53]

Twitter is a meme site. It's not essential. It's not "needed". Everyone who "needs" Twitter, needs their head checked.

[@BenRK90]

Seriously, no one needs Twitter. I quit using it LONG before the current drama with idiots buying it, and I have not once felt like I needed to check Twitter since. It wasn't a bustling city for me, it was always a place where the loudest assholes shout from and my mom to like my boring tweets. We don't need Twitter, we never have, and people might figure that out if people stop making content going "why can't we quit Twitter?"

[@TechnoSpice]

Americans in particular are properly conditioned little Consumers. We're really bad at voting with our wallet and we're really bad at quitting things that we know are bad. For us, for the environment, for our country, doesn't matter. We all justify and say it won't make a difference. I say "we" as a lump sum but I have long since quit all social media and I refuse to go to Chic Fil A and a bunch of other restaurants. I really wish more people would do that.

[@MatthewTheWanderer]

I have NEVER used Twitter and I never will! I can't understand why anyone else ever uses it, either!

[@fetB]

noone needs it but its functional for various people to post statements etc. Noone needs the internet either. People have lived long before it. And nobody needs cars... You can keep it going until you left with the basics

[@EmeraldMara85]

Unless you're someone that's reporting what's happening in your local district that needs the furthest reach, like the oppression in Palestine.

[@MatthewTheWanderer]

@@EmeraldMara85 Twitter is NOT the furthest reach, lol!

[@ulaB]

I was on Twitter for 16 years. I just couldn't stand it anymore and took asylum on Mastodon. It's not that hard to switch.

[@cpnYarhar]

The people I follow on Twitter are not on Mastodon. It's impossible to switch.

[@ulaB]

@@cpnYarhar Ask them to switch too.:) It's a hen and egg problem. You won't go because they are not there, they won't go because you aren't there. I still go and check for anyone contacting me on Twitter once a week or so, but it's only spambots - which Elon wanted to get rid of with his stupid changes. In the last week I had 13 sexy girl bots like or reply to my posts and 8 NFT/coin bots in my Notifications.

[@ThomasBlinuxguy]

​@@cpnYarharfollow better people. Mastodon has much better personal engagement. Besides, you don't leave, those people you say you can't leave because of will never leave because that's where their followers are

[@inorite4553]

There are a 3rd and 4th options: Option 3: just stop using it and let it die. Option 4: Nationalize Social Media and regulate them as a utility.

[@RealClanCinema]

holy China there bud lmaooo

[@pensivelyrebelling]

I vote option 4

[@inorite4553]

@@RealClanCinema I see you have forgotten how TV was taken under control by the government, regulations were put into place to protect the common good by limiting who could own how much to prevent a single person from controlling the information stream and requiring that a portion be used for Public Good programing. That's how we got the nightly News and how PBS and Sesame Street became a thing.

[@PhoenixGameplay2]

@@pensivelyrebelling that is a good idea for government propaganda down everyone’s troats

[@ramshaka]

From the beginning to now, I still have no idea what people get out of twitter. Literally it's the dumbest social media site, and the only thing that's ever made it useful or popular, is the fact that you can catch famous people saying idiotic things, in random hot takes. And that's pretty much the hierarchy of it all.

[@unkown34x33]

honestly I don't know either... I guess just the text stuff. but really... nothing important has been lost. and Jesus! Elon it's crazy I rather not anymore.. I'm Brazilian by the way. thanks god twitter it's banned

[@Oscar_Barajas]

I left twitter a year ago and it was one of the best decisions i've ever taken. I don't miss it at all.

[@NotaWalrus1]

I find it funny when twitter users think the entire world uses twitter

[@joyflameball]

I've never used Twitter in my life and it's so peaceful for it. I dread to think of the person I'd be if I used it.

[@_shadow_1]

​@@joyflameball​​@joyflameball I mean, that probably has more to do with the fact that you're not the type of person that uses Twitter rather than the actual act of using that platform. People who don't actively seek out Twitter are just happier people on average.

[@SithCats]

Exactly. I learned how to use Twitter because I was told it would help my career. It didn't. I abandoned my Twitter for several years, didn't miss it at all. Eventually I started using it as a place to follow politics and voice my opinions without constantly bombarding the people I know IRL on Facebook. I dialed back my Twitter user after the 2020 election for my own mental health, and immediately started feeling better for having done so. I deleted my account the day Elon's purchase was finalized, haven't looked back once since. My internet experience is better for the absence of Twitter. I recommend everyone else try dropping it too.

[@PMabq]

Like MTG assuming FBI director Chris Wray MUST be following her on Sh!tter

[@dietotaku]

the entire world WAS using twitter. where were the first accounts of the arab spring coming from? twitter. where did news break about the myanmar coup? twitter. how did we get footage of unidentified federal agents in unmarked vans kidnapping people during the BLM protests? twitter. this smug "muahahaha imagine thinking people use twitter, I'VE never used twitter, i'm far too SUPERIOR to have ever used a popular social media site!" is just as obnoxious as muskrat thinking people will throw money at him to worship him on his vanity platform.

[@IcyAuron]

Never used Twitter. Never saw the appeal. It didn't just recently become a cesspool, as implied here. As always, love your stuff. Thanks!

[@connorwalters9223]

I went completely cold turkey on social media two years ago, and honestly, it’s been amazing. No Twitter, no Instagram, no Reddit. I even deleted the KZbin app from my phone. I only watch KZbin in my browser now. And I have to say, it’s been a massive improvement. I’m less stressed, I’m wasting less time, and I’ve been able to make more real life connections. Quitting social media has been nothing but a net positive for me.

[@williamhutton2126]

Psst... KZbin IS social media.

[@Pikachu2Ash]

@@williamhutton2126 I always have to laugh when weirdos like this don't think KZbin is part of social media XD

[@megapussi]

@@williamhutton2126 Idk if u noticed but when you watch an adam conover video, it isnt a live conversation he's having directly with you. You aren't socializing with anyone when you watch youtube.

[@aylbdrmadison1051]

@@williamhutton2126 : Reading comprehension requires one is at the very least aware of their own prejudices, or their reading comprehension will forever remain compromised.

[@John_Smith_60]

​ @Pikachu2Ash If you are posting videos of your opinions and/or making comments on videos, then for you, KZbin is social media.

[@deadcard13]

With how hard as it was to get off of Facebook, I'm kinda glad I never bought into Twitter. Much sympathy for anyone that relies on social media to promote their brand.

[@ChatGTA345]

The last bit is the sad truth, yeah :( I never used Twitter but recently had to start using it to attempt to learn how to grow an audience. There are some better ways (like newsletters etc), but they're in no way easier.

[@BloodyYTNamingNonsense]

They deserve what they get.

[@BloodyYTNamingNonsense]

@@blank2556People promoting brands deserve to roll in the muck of social media. Branding is thought-cancer.

[@MRuby-qb9bd]

​@@blank2556 I mean I am sympathetic to smaller creators, but I think it does emphasize the fact that the site is less a utility useful for the public at large than it is a marketing and networking tool that is mostly useful for a much smaller group of people while being generally a soul-sucking dumpster fire designed to force ads and misinformation down the rest of our throats.

[@FlyingD]

I can leave and did. When I had to pay $8/month to contact any company's tech support. That was the last straw.

[@Gormbauer]

I've never used Twitter and never needed it. I genuinely don't think it's as important as people say it is. I hope social media all falls apart soon, so everyone can realize that too

[@renatocorvaro6924]

Speak for yourself, I was never on Twitter and never will be! But also everything you said is, as usual, extremely well-informed, educational, and entertaining. Thanks for all you do Adam.

[@Zephyr_Zeitgeist]

This is like the 4th time I've heard someone bring up Tumblr as a part of their drag on Twitter. I'll give Adam the credit for not saying it's dead, at least. It's just weird. We do still talk about Supernatural, but mostly ironically, it's full of memes that are weeks, months, or even years old, we read Dracula every year, and we have our own holidays. And Neil Gaiman is there.

[@ParadoxicalThird]

It's likely because neither he nor any of his writers (And this show does have writers, it's very overproduced, speaking as someone who generally likes Adam's work) personally use tumblr or really understand its niche within the social media landscape. It's a bad look though to be honest because it shows a fundamental lack of proper research went into the script.

[@Zephyr_Zeitgeist]

@@ParadoxicalThird There was at least enough research that he didn't call Tumblr dead. And enough research to know that Supernatural persists there. I'm going to guess at least one member of the team uses Tumblr. The bar is on the floor, but he didn't trip on it.

[@michaelharris8598]

Read Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman. Great book but it left me wondering whether or not the protagonist truly is crazy or not.

[@DontSigh]

Also, "filled with geriatric milennials"? Is he implying all milennials are geriatric or does he really think it's mostly filled with users who are, what, 35+? Tumblr certainly has quite a few of those, but it still has a lot more 25-35 year olds. Young to middle milennials and quite a lot of geriatric gen z, if anything.

[@Zephyr_Zeitgeist]

@@DontSigh Adam is a millennial, and he also doesn't think generations aren't a real thing, so I'm pretty dang sure that was a joke.

[@justaguy2182]

I left Twitter this year, and I don’t regret it for a second. If I want to be informed, I’ll actually look things up, not rely on a monstrous abomination of a site to tell me what’s going on.

[@alvinmiller9038]

Adam I don't need twitter, nor have I ever had Twitter. Up vote if you are the same.

[@ComradeCatpurrnicus]

"It's where the party's at" that party is mostly fascists now, acting like nobody is going to be influenced by them, especially younger people, is ridiculous because they see the stuff next to so many influencers that decide to stay and it will undoubtedly normalize fascism. Incredibly depressing people can't see this.

[@aylbdrmadison1051]

Not just now. This has been the case since the party-flip in the 1960's caused the Democrats to become _the party of Lincoln_ purely by default.

[@seanmaddex4104]

I’m pretty sure the young people are on tik tok

[@Ahzpayne]

His argument is "sure it's a Nazi bar but it's the Nazi bar all your friends are hanging out at" without realizing the solution is to get better friends. I feel like the entire country is trying to relive high school and I was never asked nor informed about it happening.

[@rjframe4410]

Thats just it is IS influencing people. just not how the right and Elon wanted. Its churning negative voter turn out type vibes. Whats happening is people are seeing whats going on and ACTIVELY rejecting these folks. I stay because I get to see the next crazy BS comming down the pipe. We got Trump because we didnt pay attention, and Elon gave us a big ol spotlight to see into the heart of the right. That helps us prevent J6 2.0 and more.

[@tachobrenner]

@@Ahzpayne It's just that the crazy ones stand out. You won't really see viral clip about a normal person being average and sort of reserved all day.

[@Thraeryn]

My guy, aside from public funding, you described Mastodon/the Fediverse at the end. The server I'm on isn't a HUGE party, but if I look around at the folks attending the party, I'm happy to see all of them there. It's a good party, and I know the hosts; I know that I can tell them I'm having a problem, and they'll kick out the assholes.

[@Sketchblopp]

There are also some news outlets and accounts of politicians on there. German government has an instance, as have many of our news broadcasters, and Germany is not the only one having done this, many journalists are in the Fediverse from all over the place as well.

[@SSB2121]

The more people who leave the more they'll realize that they can live without it.

[@hellhound1389]

I was convinced to join Facebook but after 2 weeks I realized I have a real life and terminated my account. I haven't been on anything except KZbin since

[@SSB2121]

@@hellhound1389I left Reddit when the CEO turned out to be a scumbag. I thought I would miss it but here we are months later and I'm doing just fine.

[@lenas6246]

you wrote this twice at least. is your "real life" in youtue comment section?@@hellhound1389

[@BoboMagroto26]

I got rid of my Twitter, it was fueling self hatred and just making my depression and anxiety worse, so bye bye.

[@daxratbone1548]

The bit about the "high book" and "hexagon based internet* had made ugly laughing BAD. Bless your comedic writing, speed, and wit.

[@dmholman]

Threads could easily have knocked Twitter off but apparently the idea of a chronological feed was just too crazy of an idea for them to implement. Much better to use Instagram's voodoo and fairy dust algorithm to show posts. A chronological feed would have given them time update everything else. Instead, it was near unusable when we logged in and most of us never went back.

[@ewokninja123]

What are you talking about? Tap the threads logo at the top of the app and then select following. You get a chronological feed of the accounts you are following.

[@dmholman]

@@ewokninja123 When Threads launched, it didn't have a chronological feed. That was added later through updates. Originally, it used the same weird feed algorithm as Instagram. It was one of the dumbest decisions they could have made while trying to become a Twitter replacement. A lot of people bailed because of it and never went back. By the time they put out the update, the damage was done and they had lost so much momentum.

[@AbramSF]

The default needed to be chronological.

[@malenaaaaaa499]

Yeah, and maybe instead of showing a bunch of "famous" accounts on the search icon maybe just maybe show what is actually trending. It's the reason why I used Twitter sometimes, to know what people were talking about.

[@ewokninja123]

@@malenaaaaaa499 Fair. I suspect that feature is coming but if that's what you're waiting on I understand.

[@jeffreyestahl]

Not all of us might miss Twitter, Adam. You can't miss what you never used.

[@bosstowndynamics5488]

Sadly, good things happen on Twitter even for those of us who don't use it, and as it transitions into an alt right hell hole it's rapidly changing those good things into disproportionate influence for awful reactionaries

[@ensetsu]

I was hoping someone else said this very necessary statement

[@Hurricayne92]

Ironically i mostly used Twitter for the *Ahem* Adult content but now its just not worth it

[@emanym]

I used it and miss it, but I am never going back 😅

[@smatting2627]

I left a week or two after Mushy took over, it became a ghost town and all the thirst-trap girls started missing their reply guys. Never been back. Never missed it. Seems like screaming into the digital void was a phase, not a necessity. Mastodon was like a build your own radio set from radio shack. Hive was just . . . sad. I almost tried Threds but read the no privacy/ harvest all your data disclaimer in the beginning and said “nope!” So now i talk to real people more, accomplish more, and sleep more. Sorry for all the people who created clout on Twitter.

[@sharbanu1]

Twitter is nice for being in and seeing a large community that you are a part of and because of this the only way twitter will truly die is if something else naturally takes it's place or if the site just becomes inaccessible to most people. Basically we either need another social media site to be better and stay around long enough for everyone to shift over to it or twitter needs to either become unavailable to a majority of people or the features on twitter need to become unavailable. So the requirement for everyone to have a subscription MIGHT be what kills it. I feel for all the artists and businesses that will need to find somewhere else to reach out to the public without having to pay for ads everywhere.

[@WhyFeartheTruthNow-ih4pm]

Twitter is the only site that doesn't demonetize content creators due to their political beliefs, so long live Twitter.

[@bobowon5450]

we don't NEED twitter lmao. The website didn't get tanked by elon musk, it was bad before, it's always been bad, and to any well adjusted person it's looked like a hellscape for years.

[@ErikaCrist7749]

Harsh truth

[@ParadoxicalThird]

I think this is honestly pretty accurate. The thing is: To those of us who are, bluntly, not experiencing some flavor of mental illness, Twitter has always looked quite bad from the outside looking in. Like, sorry folks, life existed before Twitter. Its modern 'boom' period is barely a decade old. It's extremely telling that people have become almost parasocial with a social media site and if anything it's a pretty good indicator that Americans, especially, have double digit % mentally ill people who we probably should not have introduced twitter to to begin with. The assertion we 'need' it comes from people with a vested interest in us needing it, but it provides very little societal level pros vs the serious cons it has introduced. To be blunt: You're using Twitter as a standin for therapy and meaningfully changing your bad behavior because it's provided you with an outlet to act badly that you don't want to get rid of and would rather we all be forced to engage with you on.

[@aylbdrmadison1051]

Now that's real talk.

[@GeorgeWashingtonLaserMusket]

With the sole exception of high school forcing me to make an account and post three messages (They didn't care what it said, it was so weird) I have never used twitter, I also deleted my account.

[@bobowon5450]

@@GeorgeWashingtonLaserMusket I don't even think that should be legal wtf

[@galamotshaku]

Best analogy I´ve heard is that twitter is now like that limbo after the party or the club closes where everyone is just outside of the venue trying to figure out where to go next but no one leaves.

[@t3tsuyaguy1]

Here's the thing about Twitter users. You're all collectively deluded about the importance and value of the site. Only 20-30% of Americans have had active Twitter profile at any given time. And among that 20-30%, 20% of them account for 80% of the traffic. That means that 80% of what you see on Twitter has only ever come from 4-6% of the population. It was NEVER the town square. It was NEVER representative of even a meaningful minority of Americans. Bearing all that in mind, it's not actually that weird that the damage Elon's done hasn't driven people from the site. Most of you using it were already willing to engage with what was always a cesspool of nonesense.

[@bluester7177]

They aslo always extrapolate the importance of twitter to the world, which doesn't make any sense, maybe if he was talking about meta then I may have agreed.

[@t3tsuyaguy1]

@@bluester7177 100%

[@pauls8219]

I dragged my feet. But eventually, I left. There is nothing there except an opportunity to directly insult MGT. And this was not enough to justify staying.

[@sarahlusher5156]

I've never used Twitter because I've never understood the appeal. It is sad that one man ruined something that so many people enjoyed. But if you think it's so terrible, you should honestly just leave it unless you literally can't afford to for professional reasons. That all being said, I am on Tumblr and it's the only social media I genuinely enjoy! It's always surprising to hear other people say that it's a ghost town. In my experience, it is still very much alive.

[@Inanedata]

If you like Tumblr right now it benefits you to have the rep of a ghost town tbh

[@thisbarbieisahugefckingmess]

@@Inanedata exactly, tumblr has survived this far BECAUSE people think it's dead.

[@ic5889]

Don't tell anyone we're alive dont you rememeber how the site became much more bearable after the big twitter exodus of 2018

[@Elithrae]

Yeah, I was really confused about that, 'cause while I don't post on there much (never really have), I go there for content and there's still plenty. Tumblr is where fandoms go, and I don't think that's a bad thing.

[@DanaTheInsane]

I'm on Blusky. Its easy to not be swarmed with Nazis.

[@PaulSmith-qs1es]

The strange thing about this video to me is that in my entire network of family and friends and, so far as i know, acquaintances, I was the only one who used Twitter at all before Elon Musk took it over. So, I just don't get how we are "stuck" with it. All some one has to do is come out with something better. When I tried Bluesky, I thought was exactly the same as twitter with most of the same accounts saying the same things and i thought, do i really want to go back to this? and that's why i stopped using it. also, this video totally over looks the porn angle despite name dropping tumblr. threads can't make it because they don't allow nudity.

[@gregmark1688]

We aren't stuck with it. Adam is being a bit of an idiot here. He feels stuck with it, and he's managed to convince himself that it's not just him, that we're all stuck with it. But, we aren't.

[@bluester7177]

​@@gregmark1688His perspective is skewed by being an internet content creator which he should have realized but didn't, his friends are all on twitter, because they mostly have similar jobs. If I used social media to keeu up with family and friends I don't see, it would not be twitter I use, most of them aren't there, in my country they would probably be on Facebook.

[@pansepot1490]

All observational comedy is like that. Comedians talk as if what they say applied universally. We laugh and get along with it because we the audience understand the granted disclaimer that what being said is common but by no means it applies to everyone. In this specific case by “we” stuck on Twitter he obviously means Twitter users, not people who never were on Twitter on the first place. When he reports official stats about Twitter number of users showing only a little decrease it’s not his skewed perspective; it’s hard data which he gives his views on. Note that that when I said “we the audience understand” I didn’t mean it literally else this whole post would not be written. 😁

[@aaroncole-bookish]

get what you are saying but im sorry did he address the idea that a lot of accounts are just being abandoned and probably hijacked. if i missed that my apologies. So let me understand , Adam is a satirist but believes in "hard data". well why are you translating for him then if its so clear what he's saying. oh I see I just don't "get Him like you do" because reasons right ? just being observational here but this tube post is about Adam's dilemma and his worries and feelings. and if you read the comments what he's saying is only common for twit users and thats about it. he is not being broad here it seems like he's worried a portion of users will be like little lost children in the forest and he wont be able to reach them if the platform dies. like all the art and entertainment will suddenly dry up and people will not know where to find or support it. the problem iv always had with the internet in gen is the egotism factor. right now im getting endorphin rush just from responding to you. as if anything im saying is that great but yet here i am anyway. @@pansepot1490

[@Just_a_commenter]

Every time I pop onto Twitter, even briefly, is an unpleasant experience. Lots of people I dislike being boosted because they bought their visibility? Check. Tons of obnoxious ads that make scrolling a hot mess? Check. Lousy media playback when I actually want to watch a video? Check. At least I know rocket boy is losing money on it... So, that's a plus.

[@0Fyrebrand0]

It doesn't matter if he's losing money on it, he has infinite money. He will keep Twitter going for as long as people are using it and giving him the attention he craves. If you want to keep having unpleasant experiences on Twitter, stop using Twitter. It's not going to get better.

[@Dexter037S4]

@@0Fyrebrand0 Well, the Tesla board are pissed at him since he's basically torpedoed the Company, only Muskheads buy Tesla's now, not the Trumpians he's catering too, and leftists buy Hyundais and shit now.

[@bluester7177]

​@@0Fyrebrand0he does not have infinite money, tesla is not the same as it used to be, as all of the other car companies are catching up, the only reason Tesla is even profitable is because it sells carbon credits.

[@nismo2070]

@@0Fyrebrand0 I don't think he really has any personal wealth. All of his worth is based on overinflated stocks. I still do not understand how tesla can be worth more than toyota on any given day. Toyota is not slashing prices on its vehicles. Tesla is. When the people with actual money get tired of his BS, he will go away like he should.

[@altman575]

Back in the radio days, billionaires had to make bribes instead of campaign contributions. You don't get in legal trouble for campaign contributions, you get rewarded with congress leaving you to do whatever you want for Corporate profits.

[@sirshmoopyfox]

As a person who never got into the Twitter trend this is fun to watch

[@gaptoofgranny]

Adam, we *have* tried it before. Before the advent of social media, we had forums. They were run by dedicated, good users who all agreed on a code of conduct, and anyone breaching that code was either warned, suspended our outright shown the door. We had checks and balances against extremist rhetoric. We made sure disinformation and misinformation was not propagated throughout the place or repeated elsewhere. It took a bit more work, but it was worth it because everyone was better mannered and a lot more cognizant of their actions.

[@BluePoliceBoxChicago]

preach.

[@einargs]

Well. There were many forums that were cesspools too. But there are still forums around -- I far prefer them to any social media.

[@Elithrae]

You're absolutely right. But the problem is the *world* changed along the way. I'm not sure how people are missing this, but we've had a literal global rise in fascism, hate speech, hate crimes, etc. There's so much wrong with the world right now, and for some reason, somewhere along the way, people decided that the right to be hateful and say whatever you want supercedes the right to human decency. And unfortunately, we've leaned into an era where protecting people is now seen as censorhip. I mean, Elon *literally* bought Twitter to dismantle the safeguards and protections (what little there were) against hate speech. That speaks volumes. We live in a world where we're all okay with the most powerful man in the world being Lex Luthor and not doing a damn thing to stop it.

[@BluePoliceBoxChicago]

One of the big reasons folks feel emboldened to say and do hateful stuff IRL is because their social media doppelgangers got permission to do it online. I firmly believe that had these sites been better regulated - and not algorithmically amplifying the stupidest, most inaccurate, and hateful voices - that behaviour would be way less of an issue. Folks need to get off social media and engage with real humans in reality. @@Elithrae

[@chalkedlines8960]

You’re exactly right.

[@sharongallagher274]

I had absolutely no problem leaving Twitter before it became X so I’m proudly one of that 5%, and my life has less toxicity for it. 👍

[@JohnLee-dp8ey]

I'm one of the 5.6% of Twitter (now X) users that quit Twitter entirely, and I'm glad I did, and wished I'd done it sooner. I'm just disappointed at the state of not only Twitter, but of social media in general. Social media is now nothing but a cesspool of hate, nonsense, unrelated news, and especially since COVID hit the world, I find myself more and more disconnected with my friends on social media. This is why I not only deleted my Twitter account, but also my Facebook (Meta), Instagram and Tumblr accounts. Nowadays, I use Discord, and it's more than enough for me

[@CaptRespect]

Twitter has always been an internet rage machine. It occasionally had something funny or informative, but was always a net negative. Quitting it was easy, and I don’t think you need to replace it with anything similar.

[@christineherrmann205]

Never used Twitter, don't miss it. Just say no, people. Reclaim your life and your dignity.

[@aluisious]

+1

[@AbnerHolsinger]

I never used it either, but then, I am a cinnamon roll

[@LilFeralGangrel]

i left twitter during last fall in 2022, it took me months to stay off the website and be consistent. ngl i was genuinely addicted to the site, and leaving it was the best thing that i did for myself.

[@jonathanwilliams7436]

Never used Twitter, never understood why people would want to.

[@louisjones2653]

Thank you for covering topics that go ignored by most outlets. I deleted Twitter on day 1 of Elon's ownership and my life is way better for it. Like any addictive substance there were withdrawals, but once you get over that it feels like taking your life back.

[@keremgo3d]

It was first and only social media since 2008. I had good memories there. My humble art liked and retweeted by my favourite artists and musicians. I've met Japanese photographers which widened my horizon. Joined wonderful fan communities and enjoyed supporting them on their causes. It's all gone. My reach there dropped zero and even my friend don't see my posts. It's very sad for me and very disappointing. 😥

[@VoidCael]

I'm so sorry ... it sucks that the Internet has become like this. I'm happy you at least got to enjoy it when it was better.

[@keremgo3d]

@@VoidCael Thank you so much 💔

[@CainXVII]

I agree. There was a great community for small groups. Artists, minorities, people who liked small genres of music or a certain podcast. I really enjoyed Twitter for a couple of years, in my tiny bubble of nerdy interests. But it's all gone now.

[@romeda]

Hey! So for some context for my comment, I built Twitter from the ground up, coined the word Tweet, and helped design the protocols that power Mastodon. First, I'd like to say thanks for making this challenge more visible to a wider audience! In terms of finding solutions, though, I think you've slightly missed the mark. The "public institution" approach is good, and is part of the solution, but it misses an important point: Unlike TV, Twitter is global. In the UK, the BBC has talked about building a "publicly run alternative to social media" - but that doesn't do anything for people in the United States. I'm sure you didn't mean to imply this, but your proposed solution kind of assumes that the only place that matters in this conversation is the US. If you take the argument a bit further, what does it look like if we have a social media, run by public institutions, where everyone's at the party? It looks like ... PBS, NPR, the BBC, the CBC, France TV, etc, and a bunch of private institutions all building systems to support their audiences. But that possible future is fragmented and doesn't have everyone at the party. That's where protocols come in. When the telephone monopolies were broken up, they weren't just nationalized - global standards were established, so that people from the United States could reliably call people from the UK, etc. Things are a bit more complicated now, and the standards involved in social media should be more flexible than the ones that we got for telcos (which ended up being effectively run by cartels), but the general principle applies: We need protocols, not organizations. Mastodon is just one piece of software that uses open protocols to work across organizational boundaries. It's very early days (despite 15+ years of work by many thousands of people to get to this point), and my hope is that Meta/Threads will follow through on their promise to interoperate and that we'll eventually see Twitter itself join the network of interoperable sites. Indeed, it always should have been a protocol, not a site. When you say that you don't know what a better social media landscape would be because we haven't tried it, I'd offer that many of us have, and continue to try. It does a major disservice to their work to dismiss it as "too nerdy." There's a way to frame your video that acknowledges the deep experience and knowledge of those who have put in the work, but also seeks to improve upon that work. I encourage you to use your platform to elevate the volunteers whose work hasn't so far been enough, because we all want the same outcome!

[@KoylTrane]

​@@greyecatthis is a comment. Read it, it only takes a minute or two.

[@Jeffzda]

Thanks Blaine! Love your work

[@paulgoogol2652]

​@@greyecatyea like anybody actually watches the videos and isn't just scrolling through comments.

[@custardstuff5178]

With respect, an application reflects it's builders and mastodon was built by nerds, y'all need to hire some grandma's and Teens for UX testing because Adam is right, as it is now the onboarding process will kill interest

[@matthewbeat]

Sounds like Mastadon needs a marketing team.

[@brucewilliams2106]

no one is trapped on any social media.

[@DA-br9xd]

Nobody I know uses Twitter and whenever I've been on it, I've seen nothing but bots, trolling, and snide comments. I am failing to see why we "need" Twitter.

[@ohiasdxfcghbljokasdjhnfvaw4ehr]

that's like saying you've never read a book and fail to see why we need "reading"

[@John_Smith_60]

@ohiasdxfcghbljokasdjhnfvaw4ehr Analogy fail. Not even close. At best, it's like saying I've never read _Mein Kampf_ and _Mein Kampf_ isn't needed.

[@DA-br9xd]

@@ohiasdxfcghbljokasdjhnfvaw4ehr Not really. I didn't use the word never

[@Saanail]

I think there is a disconnect here about Twitter between content creators and the rest of us. I used Twitter for a bit for my past job but otherwise never access the app. Content creators however, even after Musk fucked everything up, still push their Twitter - to the point where they even have giveaways that require you access it through Twitter. Many content creators act as if Twitter is necessary and there is no way to move somewhere else, while it seems regular internet users would rather Twitter just go away. All that said, Adam's point about starting a publically controlled social media is a thought in the right direction. The pendulum has swung in favor of monopolies and corporate power for long enough. It's time to swing it the other way and take public control over internet infrastructure - in both physical space and cyberspace.

[@KoylTrane]

The public doesn't care or we wouldn't be in this situation in the first place. Convenience above all.

[@Echo81Rumple83]

​@@KoylTranethey'll have to care when private corporations are hacked every now and then while our private info is compromised. At least public entities take cyber security more seriously than some for-profit credit score checker, even when it comes to making oceanographic data available to the public (that was my dad's job before he retired back in 2019 when TFG's latest govt. shutdown was the last straw).

[@Echo81Rumple83]

My thoughts exactly. However, the citizen's trust in anything operated by the state, city or federal govt. is at an all-time low, and it would have to involve the majority of developed countries to do a global social media platform, and their freedom-of-speech laws are WAY different than ours in the US. Plus, there wouldn't be an option for anonymity for content creators who want to stay out of the public eye while creating art, video essays, etc.

[@KoylTrane]

@@Echo81Rumple83 the year 2023, people don't give a shit about their private information being constantly gathered by google and tiktok. Unless those hacks will have any IRL repercussions, they won't care about those either.

[@backlogbuddies]

If creators used their own websites we wouldn't have this issue.

[@KDLessAchievable]

I think Adam's position on this is a little skewed by being an Internet personality and apparently a heavy twitter user. He's assuming something is important to everyone because it important to him. I have been a committed netizen since back when people were actually still using that term, and I personally have never used twitter. I just didn't see the appeal... and I still don't, and I really don't think I'm in the minority. The importance of twitter is inflated by a very vocal minority.

[@lucasfernando4097]

I have been using the internet since 1996 and I still don't have a twitter account, and I don't intend on creating one. I think you're right about his opinion being biased. He makes good points, especially regarding The Idiot, Elon Musk, but then, like a delusional socialist who has a "solution" to all our problems, he wants to create a "public twitter". Give me a break. Unfortunately, we are victims of Twitter because it's the first platform. That's it. There are many examples of better technologies to replace our current ones, and we still haven't been able to break these habits. It's a known phenomenon. But the solution is for government to take over Twitter and create a twitter.gov? This might be another case of he being a hammer and seeing every problem as a nail.

[@spudsbuchlaw]

Isnt that the minority he's talking about? Not the people who never never had Twitter but the people who still do have it?

[@negspirito]

You aren't in the minority. Twitter users have always been a relatively small portion of the internet population

[@Thinkcrown]

Just because you enjoy being ignorant and powerless doesn’t mean the rest of us do.

[@williamhutton2126]

@@Thinkcrown You probably, pathetically, actually believe that, simpleton. Clearly disproving both qualities you sounded off on. Because you remain ignorant and powerless, regardless.

[@zverina]

Getting people to call it "social media" was a Big Tech propaganda coup. We should really just start referring to them as "ad platforms."

[@EarthCreature.]

Twitter has lost way more than 5% of users. You're using his creative math he's using to save face

[@sumit92artist]

+1. My profession's whole community used to be there on Twitter, and now all of them have left. Migrated to their own platforms and Bluesky. Adam seems to be speaking from a place where he himself got too addicted to Twitter. When he mentioned Bluesky, he did imply how there was no fun without interactions with Nazis and nutjobs. He seems to have developed an unhealthy attachment to the online interactions he used to have on Twitter. Because most people certainly don't believe that Nazis &nutjobs make any platform worth having it.

[@gregmark1688]

@@sumit92artist Most rational people refuse in hang out anywhere in the vicinity of Nazis. Most of us actively leave the room to avoid them, if we have to. Most of us refuse to willingly attend their parties.

[@obsidianrazor]

​@@sumit92artistheck, bluesky was taken over quite quickly by lefties and furries that bully the nazis out as soon as they smell them. It's small but so much nicer and usable than the cesspit that's the undead bird site ..

[@HiSodiumContent]

Can't lose users if you don't follow through on deletion requests. Source: my account is still active months after deactivation.

[@seiretzym]

this whole concept is baffling to me as someone who tried twitter for a few weeks in the 2010s and quickly lost any desire to continue being there. the desire has never once returned and every single time I hear anything about twitter that lack of desire is reinforced

[@BloodyAngel88]

I take pride now in my ability to troll trolls. lol (THANKS, Twitter)

[@ryleighs9575]

Took the comment right out of my brain lol

[@hellhound1389]

That's the way I feel about all social media. I'm only on KZbin for the videos. I always say if they won't answer the phone when you call or talk to you face to face then they're not friends

[@agny369]

addicts in denial

[@mikevdev]

I think fundamentally, the issue with any US government body overseeing a social media site is that it immediately becomes problematic for any politician from a country outside the US to use. I know that the illusion of privacy is just that, an illusion. But can you imagine how uncomfortable governments would be with having an app owned by the US government on their devices 💀 That's not to say that I wouldn't want a publicly owned twitter, just that it would have to be owned by some form of internationally independent organisation.

[@MRuby-qb9bd]

Oh, yes this. And various other reasons regarding privacy, or where a government entity might be able to get information that would usually require a warrant, etc. There are a lot of advantages to keeping it a private company.

[@SerienchiIIer]

And this is where Mastodon has the perfect solution. The US government can host their own server that they control and any US citizen who wants to can get on it, kind of like a default. And any other government can just do the same. People can either use their government's instance, or just use one that is independently hosted.

[@brian-esss]

maybe governance/ownership should be a group like w3c instead of a government

[@cursedGalataea]

Why would you feel more comfortable with private companies selling your personal info for profit, than a government being legally obligated to protect your privacy?

[@mikevdev]

@@cursedGalataea because a government isn't necessarily my government and so may not be legally required to protect it.

[@TylerLandis]

Except Twitter has always been one of the least used social media sites. They used to give special blue check treatment to journalists, so the journalists loved it and started reporting on it like it's the Great American Town Hall, which it never was. Most Americans don't actually use Twitter.

[@Echo81Rumple83]

But folks in Europe have used it during one active shooter incident, IIRC, to keep tabs with one another. Unfortunately, despite the US's landmass, we're so distantly far apart from one another, either due to rough terrain or intentional infrastructure because Jim Crow and cultist breeding grounds :/ Oh, and big automobile and big oil.

[@alexandercosgrave]

My issue with the public social media is that of consumer routine. Some people just won't want to move from a site that has served them well, and people will want to follow those people, and so on

[@ponodude101]

The best point you made here is how scary it is that social media technically isn't a monopoly. Twitter being run by one billionaire is technically fine because people don't actually NEED Twitter and not everyone uses it or pays attention to any of that, but the reality is that, like you said, it's so ingrained in society as a whole that it basically is a monopoly without legally being one. The world is run by social media and there being no regulation for how any of that works and how much control one company can have is very concerning.

[@alben000]

100%

[@MrFitzomega]

It's crazy how he thinks that everyone is on Twitter.

[@veronicamaine3813]

I don’t know anyone who is on Twitter. You are talking about a minority as if it’s a. Majority- something like 4% of the population is on there and active. Please stop buying into this BS.

[@HairlessRaccoon]

I never even used Twitter to begin with, so sitting by and watching the fire has been even more entertaining.

[@gregmark1688]

Sounds like fun -- until you realize that the fire has spread to your house.

[@kyletowers9662]

Yeah we need to treat the Internet and social media as the public necessities they are

[@quidambrujah]

Agreed. Time to nationalize them.

[@xShadowChrisx]

Y’all do realize that would require them being run on government rules and you can no longer ban people for speech that isn’t illegal like some people cheer for?

[@karalstonalexstine7939]

Yeah. The government would still ban people, and the free speech problems would be exasperated. Like with China.

[@Atsumari]

True; the internet is a public necessity. It is required to go to school now, access medical care. I mean just look at what COVID showed us. Yeah the internet is here to stay and in nations that aren't stuck in 1925 it is actually written INTO their constitution as a right to have access to the internet.

[@seanhubbard6033]

​@@xShadowChrisxthere would still be terms of service silly. Perhaps they could be democratically decided by people on the platform.

[@exosproudmamabear558]

Some groups have no choice but using it as a news source especially kpop fanbases do not really have any other social media that can be used for informing,memeing and sharing links. So if there was a serious popular competitor, it will lose all of the user base.

[@telerye]

i left twitter and i’m back to reading more books. much happier now

[@djsammmto]

I've left Twitter. My content feed turned into a right wing cesspool. I think people don't want to lose the followers they've built over the years. I left 7k followers.

[@filo013]

You Left cause it was a Left wing cesspool yet your up in arms over other who might not think like you but dehumanize people for not liking people that are not like you.

[@Thinkcrown]

I’m not going to give you a pat on the back.

[@litneyloxan]

@@ThinkcrownSam didn't ask for one, thinkcrown 🫶

[@litneyloxan]

Was banned for posting far left activism content and labeled ant!fa. I don't miss it much even though it was sad to see something I was part of since it's creation go down like it did and change into such a cesspool for edgelords. I truly think his breakup with Grimes spun him into red pill territory. He changed a LOT politically when they fell out I noticed, she is very left wing and I feel his hard jump is out of revenge to be against what Grimes stands for. It all conveniently went down around their breakup.

[@Alic4444]

@@Thinkcrown That's nice. You don't have to be a b*tch about it though, little weasel

[@cayteo]

I think your metaphor hit the nail on the head for me -- Twitter is like a bustling city where all the people are. I moved to the countryside and haven't looked back 🤷‍♂️

[@sairbanana7393]

I hate to say it, but Bluesky and Tumblr are those countrysides for me.

[@quidambrujah]

Unfortunately in that analogy we in the city are subsidizing your ‘wide open spaces’ lifestyle. In reality, you leaving twitter didn’t cost anyone anything.

[@xdarkwing104x]

Big same. It's quieter, but there's a lot let's Nazi screeching on the other apps

[@aaroncole-bookish]

respectfully thats total bs about the city subsidizing open spaces lifestyle . you sound a bit bitter when someone else criticizes twitter. kind took it personal didn't ya? well thats the problem right there. its all emotion and ego online. hell im obviously feeling that stupid internet false ego boost right now just by responding to this as if you give a shit about what i say. lol indeed. jeezus what a shallow world we live in( at least on line) @@quidambrujah

[@cbushin]

Getting bitten by mosquitoes can be enlightening. It is a lesson im itching, blood loss, and how much it sucks to have mosquito bites.

[@Smieska_13]

Dude , all the shitty people from tumblr went to twitter. Tumblr has been awesome the past few years because all the shit left. Isn't twitter also like 50% bots or something?

[@Raquibo]

Sorry bro, I don't need Twitter to lead a happy, productive life any more than I need FB, Tik Tok or Insta and I'm no luddite, but rather a tech enthusiast. The harms of most social media simply outweighs the benefits for me. I do like the idea of a public version of a micro blogging site, something closer to Craigslist or Wikipedia.

[@Nick-Quick]

Timestamps: 00:01 Despite the controversies and decline in value, Twitter still retains a significant number of active users. 02:04 Elon Musk's rebranding of Twitter as 'X' resulted in a $20 billion loss in brand value. 04:08 Elon Musk's erratic behavior and rebranding of Twitter as 'X' have not been successful. 06:07 The demand for an alternative platform to Twitter is high, but existing platforms like Mastadon and Blue Sky have limitations. 08:08 Threads failed to replace Twitter due to lack of active users and a boring user experience. 10:07 Twitter has become a public good that millions rely on and we are stuck with it. 12:17 Dysfunctional changes to Twitter, causing dangerous misinformation and fake videos, threaten a crucial communication platform in modern times. 14:24 Imagine a public social media run by the public for the public good

[@noah4822]

i dont get it. the vid is 17 minutes who is using these timestamps?

[@ryanlillie8469]

Thank you! Now I don't have to put any more thought into this nonsense. I really wish I wasn't so susceptible to sensationalism but I'm stuck to a screen.

[@rahrahrobbbieee]

Nice job. Drowned all the nonsense in one fell swoop. 👍🏼👍🏼🤺🤺

[@Firikka]

Thanks! This was useful when I misclicked to start the video again from the beginning and didn't remember where the progress bar was at that time. ❤

[@Nick-Quick]

@@Firikka This is exactly why I lost these. It makes it much easier for me to find details in the future

[@Martial-Mat]

Nobody should control the market square, but nor should any one nation. The idea of America having exclusive control over who can say what is sickening.

[@XoaGray]

Honestly, I haven't used Twitter since about a month after Elon bought it and I don't miss it a bit. Like you said, it was bad before he bought it. I've been on Mastodon for the last 3-4 years and I'm fine with just hanging out on there. If I go anywhere from here, it'll be like some others have suggested to leave Social Media all together. Because ultimately I think we were all better off without it.

[@stevenclark1662]

I left all social media a few years ago. My high blood pressure went away, and I'm now at a healthy weight. I'm not kidding, it was literally hurting my health. I wasn't even THAT big of a user.

[@charlotteinnocent8752]

I prefer discord. Discussions are better and more knowledgeable.

[@danschoenharl3856]

This party has never felt the need for a Twitter party, much less an X party. I'm not stuck with it, as I always knew I never wanted to be stuck with it.

[@Pre.Ellis10]

I just found out you had a KZbin channel. I was literally RAISED on your show. I’m so glad you’re still making content.

[@ZennExile]

it's not good content though, he's stuck so far up his own tailpipe that new information can't reach his brain anymore. All he does is flap his head with corporate messaging between based takes about current events.

[@kristiyangerasimov6708]

@@ZennExile can't have anything nice with people like you

[@marcellagflowers]

​@@ZennExile you think advocating for unions, criticizing monopolies in social media, and calling out the resurgence of child labor is "corporate messaging"?? tf

[@marcellagflowers]

​@@ZennExile(also, "based" is a good thing. since the rest of your comment is more critical, I'm assuming you thought it meant "basic" but it actually means like "so true")