> Almost everything on Facebook has a comment thread attached, in-app, with your friends' comments at the top.
Two things about comment threads. Does everything have to have a comment thread? And this isn't just Facebook specific question, the vast majority of media sites put comment threads below their articles. Clearly, allowing user engagement at massive scales comes with a cost: moderation, disinformation, etc.
On Facebook, I can't choose to disable comments or likes on a per-post basis. They are always there, whether I like it or not. The only agency I have is to change the visibility of the entire post, and even that's not necessarily what I want.
I only post something on social media if I'm willing to engage with others. Comments are ephemeral and very much direct. They are specific writing format. There are times when I want to put something up but I'm not interested in this kind of direct and immediate feedback.
> RSS is inherently antisocial, like watching TV or reading the newspaper alone.
Newspapers, RSS and TV are only "anti-social" to the extent that don't get immediacy of giving feedback in the form of a comment or a like.
You are very much free to share and publish your own opinions about TV and newspapers via different channels. You could even write a reader letter to news outlets if you don't like what they publish. Or you could e-mail your opinions to friends and discuss them via a mailing list.
RSS itself doesn't give you that immediacy either. But you're very much free to make a post on your own blog, discussing someone else's content and have a discussion via RSS feeds and pingbacks. Back in the late 00's, during the heyday of blogs and RSS, that's exactly what happened for a brief while.
The main reasons why social media are popular is immediacy, visibility and short-lived. The massive downside of such communication is that it reduces the opportunity to reflect and make well-thought, nuanced arguments. While immediate communication has it's place, it's not healthy to have that as your only type of communication or learning about the world around you.
Two things about comment threads. Does everything have to have a comment thread? And this isn't just Facebook specific question, the vast majority of media sites put comment threads below their articles. Clearly, allowing user engagement at massive scales comes with a cost: moderation, disinformation, etc.
On Facebook, I can't choose to disable comments or likes on a per-post basis. They are always there, whether I like it or not. The only agency I have is to change the visibility of the entire post, and even that's not necessarily what I want.
I only post something on social media if I'm willing to engage with others. Comments are ephemeral and very much direct. They are specific writing format. There are times when I want to put something up but I'm not interested in this kind of direct and immediate feedback.
> RSS is inherently antisocial, like watching TV or reading the newspaper alone.
Newspapers, RSS and TV are only "anti-social" to the extent that don't get immediacy of giving feedback in the form of a comment or a like.
You are very much free to share and publish your own opinions about TV and newspapers via different channels. You could even write a reader letter to news outlets if you don't like what they publish. Or you could e-mail your opinions to friends and discuss them via a mailing list.
RSS itself doesn't give you that immediacy either. But you're very much free to make a post on your own blog, discussing someone else's content and have a discussion via RSS feeds and pingbacks. Back in the late 00's, during the heyday of blogs and RSS, that's exactly what happened for a brief while.
The main reasons why social media are popular is immediacy, visibility and short-lived. The massive downside of such communication is that it reduces the opportunity to reflect and make well-thought, nuanced arguments. While immediate communication has it's place, it's not healthy to have that as your only type of communication or learning about the world around you.