"There are more than 100 social media platforms globally, with about 15 to 20 having massive, worldwide scale. Billions of people use an average of 6.6 different networks every month."
Who knew there were so many!???
The big names that I recognize (and lots of Americans have heard of):
Facebook: Where my generation keeps up with grandchildren, political opinions, and photos of tomatoes the size of bowling balls.
Instagram: Facebook wearing yoga pants. Prettier pictures, fewer words.
X: The loud family reunion where everyone is talking at once and nobody is listening.
Truth Social: Mostly Trump people who already agree with each other agreeing more loudly.
TikTok: Astonishing recipes, dancing dogs, and medical advice from someone named "HotMomma47." Proceed with caution.
Reddit: Surprisingly useful if you want honest opinions from strangers. Also a rabbit hole from which many never return.
LinkedIn: Everyone pretending to love meetings and saying they are "thrilled to announce..."
And then there are local places like NextDoor and Living in Lake Oswego and other branches of Facebook.
Our members are mostly older adults (65+). Personally I can barely keep up with:
The New York TimesThe Wall Street JournalThe local paperA few blogs
And somehow other people watch TikTok, scroll Instagram, argue on X, post on Facebook, listen to podcasts, watch YouTube, follow Substacks, AND know what celebrity wore what to whose wedding.
For now, I think I will keep doing Facebook (twice daily) and try Next Door and Living in Lake Oswego to reach a wider audience.
Is it just me who is overwhelmed?
It is over-whelming and I, too, check in with Facebook, social blogs like yours and our Community platform daily. I've resisted looking at TikTok and Instagram even though some of my family uses them.. Never been on Truth Social or X but I love your descriptions of them. I've been on Reddit but I don't trust it.
ReplyDeleteI wish our condo community had an online bulletin board. We used to have a monthly newsletter but it withered away when I went to Maui. The HOA Chair has not allowed me to be with the "in" crowd. I volunteered again so we could have this monthly even if it's only two pages .... names of new residents, kids who have lived here for ten years or more graduating, just chit chat.
DeleteAfter weeks of sending her page by page samples ... she sent me a TEXT "Thank you for offering to work on the Newsletter, but we will continue as we are staffed now.
Please, by all means, send us your articles, idea and additions and as in the past, we will run all that we think will engage our neighbors.
Mary Beth
Really? Who puts their name on their text??
People!
I only do FB and Blogs becoz of being completely disinterested in the overwhelming amount of other platforms. You've assessed them all very well even tho' I have never visited some of them, I've heard enuf about them it will be fine if I never do. I discontinued using E-Mail, much to the chagrin of Companies who insist I should still receive some and need one... I don't. Twitter was always just random thoughts flying out of people's Mouths before they thought about the ramifications of what they just put out there. Instagram tho' popular, bores me and you can't crib the Pixs as easily as FB. I use FB precisely as you described and Blogging is my fav daily activity. TikTok my Grandkids use incessantly, I've seldom had interest in the avalanche of what it provides. Pinterest is a Rabbit Hole I could fall too deeply down to take deep dives anymore, but I always Loved it, just visual Sensory overload to spend too much time doing and feels like an Addiction I didn't want consuming me. *Smiles*
ReplyDeleteI think I've peeked at all of them! And when the emails or texts began to bother me, I closed my "account" or unsubscribed to everything, so I can go and look but not being bombarded.
DeleteI am addicted to my computer and I enjoy now having ink on my fingers from reading a REAL paper newspaper. Since I couldn't get back to sleep this morning before 5, I may go look on pinterest!