Let’s look at the situation in social media on a timeline…. notice the changes, and see where the current trend might lead.

Modern social media had its beginning with AOL back in the 1990’s Myspace followed. When these early venues were vibrant, all users were of equal status. Social media functioned as a great equalizer, Folks could showcase themselves, their lives, and discuss just about anything. New ideas emerged. Social media was a resource to its users.

About half way through the first decade of the 21st century, Facebook came along. Facebook changed users into resources, which could be managed and manipulated for profit. Each year since, Facebook has waned in terms of utility for users. Facebook provided an easy setup on a track users could easily run on. Facebook was not Myspace. It was organized, limited and structured.  People felt comfortable and safe. The public, even those who did not go online much flocked in. Facebook buried Myspace. Facebook’s users were where they served as a resource for Facebook after they had been users on Myspace.

All was good for a while. New attempts at social media  were made along the way. Without exception , Facebook was emulated. Self – promotion on all outlets had become almost impossible. Fact checking and censorship became a standard on all venues.

The essence of the social media explosion was self – promotion. Sure, businesses and activists made heavy use of it. Self – promotion among ordinary people was what stimulated most others to post frequently. It motivated multitudes to comment on posts made by others. All of this inspired vigorous activity.

The Facebook model was one which made self – promotion impossible for anyone who didn’t pay to play. Household names with established reputations were promoted in an attempt to continue the vibrance which was present in older forms of social media.

Conservative icons have pages on all social media platforms. Expectations were that the public could be guided into hovering around selected icons of conservative and other belief systems.  This would satisfy concerns over loss of First Amendment rights by the outspoken few who make noise over the issue. Every social media platform…. conservative, unconventional, outspoken and all others uses the same approach.

Newer social media venues like Rumble and Odyssey constitute First Amendment Ghettos. Their audiences are quarantined. Folks who frequent these spots hear and see what they already believe. Some do witness astonishing purported facts not reported by mainstream media. However, little to nothing ever leaves the echo chambers of these “insightful” venues. All of the First Amendment – friendly sites earn money the same as Facebook and Youtube do…. advertising.  The only way a private individual can launch a new idea or video is to pay to play. This contrasts to the pre-Facebook model where all users were on equal footing.

Companies like Facebook appear to still be growing. There are new fangled ways to generate mouse clicks and sign-ins. Just scroll down a page with the mouse and an ad pops up, especially if the mouse hovers over a link too long. Go to a page and there will be a way to sign in through a social media account. That generates an engagement that gets counted as an official number.

These kinds of approaches create mouse clicks. What else do they accomplish? Log in to your Facebook page if you still have one. Click onto some friends pages. Anything going on? Interactions on Facebook have fallen off by perhaps two thirds. Facebook activity is in the same shape Myspace activity was in around 2010 when Facebook was running them out of business.

Anyone who has owned a business and has paid for advertising knows very well that placing an ad that generates profits is a difficult task. Ads being placed on social media cannot possibly be profitable for those who place the ads. The companies profit from mouse clicks and displays regardless of how they are generated. Clicks and displays are created by any means possible. Clicks and displays are a cost to advertisers, especially if they are generated dishonestly.

Social media has played a huge role in recent elections. Talk is that it will be a determining factor in the outcomes of all future elections like it has in the past.

Is It Really Social Media?

The viewing public is treated like a virtual entity. For a number of decades, they have behaved as if they are. That doesn’t mean  they never adapt to what they experience every day. The public has seen every possible online marketing technique under heaven.

To viewers,all of this is coming down to the same ol’ same ol’. They have already responded to whatever it is that is being tried. They have adapted. They have become immune to whatever it is that is demanding their attention. Although ads come before their eyes – they no longer see them. “Been there and done that” is the modern posture of the public.

The fish aren’t biting. They are not taking the bait. Thus, social media is in trouble, although that is not yet widely acknowledged. There is monumental wealth and power in the social media elite. It will be used to continue trying to mold and manicure society in ways that guarantee a high level of profitability.

There may be efforts to nationalize social media. Given the power of the companies, this could entail the government buying out the interests of the elite for whatever their market values are at the time. The industry may be regulated to the point where it is all about as interesting as an old phone book. Whatever happens, these behemoths will be consumed with preserving the wealth they have generated up to this point. In doing this, time is not on their side.

In time, the truth becomes apparent even to all who avoid seeing it. They, along with a few others, control government.  They will use government to fund their salvation if at all possible. That is unless their profitability falls apart. If that happens, they will no longer have utility to members of Congress. In such a case, they will be thrown under the bus by lawmakers.

In coming political campaigns, social media will disappoint as a determining factor. So far in history, big tech has only dealt with a public that has been prosperous. The economy is failing. People are starting to be poor and feel poor. The stress of suffering causes the thinking brain to activate. People start looking and asking, “What’s wrong with this picture?”

A point I like to make is that how long a corporation lives is determined by its utility to society. Find the oldest publicly traded corporations and take note that every one of them has a lasting utility to society. Many others had prospered for many years. They are all gone now. It was fun while it lasted. Anyone want to buy a typewriter?

There was a time when social media provided a venue where no user automatically had predominance over another. Folks could showcase their lives and converse without being monitored, fact checked, mollified and homogenized. No such entity exists in the world today.

The glory days of social media are over. Tastes and preferences have changed. Corporations – especially big tech, have no way to respond to the changes.