In what can only be described as somewhat ironic, discussions of “monk mode” have been gaining popularity on social media platforms—notably TikTok—where users share tips on the best way to reach peak productivity.

You can also read about the advantages of using SME senior contributor Jack Kelly wrote earlier this week, “Monk mode—inspired by the disciplined lifestyle of monks—refers to intense periods of uninterrupted focus to optimize productivity. This involves focusing intensely on one task while removing distractions.

Some experts say that it’s better not to use social media at all. It is a distraction in the modern world.

“Faced with an overwhelming and ever-growing amount of information, every day, and every minute, be it by news portals, friends on social media, topics of interest and random topics that we did not know we needed to know, we are currently immersed in a sea of information,” Dr. Patricia Páez Manjarrez, professor of Organizational Development, Business Administration, and Human Resources Management in undergraduate and graduate programs at the CETYS University International Campus in Ensenada, explained.

Manjarrez continued, “A few decades ago, most of us only used one screen during a limited time period of time. Now, our screens are constantly with us. They can be a smartphone or tablet in our hand, a smartwatch, video games or multiple tabs open on various devices simultaneously. We scroll endlessly across different networks.

Information Overload

Manjarrez said that it was not so long ago we didn’t have as many screens. It’s also important to note that social media was designed in order to maintain our engagement, which is good for their respective bottom line even if not for society.

Helen Marlo is the dean of Notre Dame de Namur’s School of Psychology. She said that social media, with its wealth of information, is a world of reaction rather than reflection.

Social media culture is one of likes, follows, shares, and posts—and as much of this is polarizing, it can alter how we think and feel.

Marlo said that social media addiction can have a significant impact on how we relate to others. It limits our ability to communicate and listen, especially if another’s story is longer than 2880 characters. “Social media addiction can significantly alter ways of relating to others partially by limiting our ability to communicate and listen to others’ stories—especially if another’s story is longer than 2880 characters!”

Younger Users Are Being Impacted

Monk mode is most likely to benefit younger users, both in terms of their schoolwork and social life. Many teens and young people prefer to communicate mainly with peers using their mobile devices.

Consuming social media by students can affect their social function. Social media consumption has definitely affected students’ ability to form healthy sexual and romantic relationships. Dr. Adrienne White, Assistant Professor in the School of Social Work, Virginia Commonwealth University said.

She explained that she has spoken to students about their social media consumption, and even those who spend a lot of time on social media do well in class—but they’ve already taken a monk mode approach, even if they didn’t actually know of the term.

Baldwin-White said that many people have noticed the benefits of having an established time when they can use social media.

Social media can be a time-waster, especially if it interferes with your work or studies.

Manjarrez continued, “If you’re afraid to miss out on information or you feel negative emotions when scrolling down social media because you see others enjoying life in a way that is different than what you desire; you may be fearful of not being able to keep up with the latest news.” If you’re unable to achieve your goals or you’ve set them but can’t seem to reach them, you should pause and refocus.

In what can only be described as somewhat ironic, discussions of “monk mode” have been gaining popularity on social media platforms—notably TikTok—where users share tips on the best way to reach peak productivity.

You can also read about the advantages of using SME senior contributor Jack Kelly wrote earlier this week, “Monk mode—inspired by the disciplined lifestyle of monks—refers to intense periods of uninterrupted focus to optimize productivity. This involves being hyper-focused on one task, and eliminating all distractions.

Experts suggest that rather than discussing how best to embrace monk-mode on social media, it is better to avoid the platforms. They are one of the largest distractions of modern life.

“Faced with an overwhelming and ever-growing amount of information, every day, and every minute, be it by news portals, friends on social media, topics of interest and random topics that we did not know we needed to know, we are currently immersed in a sea of information,” Dr. Patricia Páez Manjarrez, professor of Organizational Development, Business Administration, and Human Resources Management in undergraduate and graduate programs at the CETYS University International Campus in Ensenada, explained.

Manjarrez said: “In the past, people only used one screen during a limited time period. Today, they have multiple screens on them at all times, including a smartwatch, a phone, and video games. They also use several tabs on various devices simultaneously, while scrolling on many different social networks.

Information Overload

Manjarrez said that it was not so long ago we didn’t have as many screens. It’s also important to note that social media was designed in order to maintain our engagement, which is beneficial to the platform’s bottom line even if not for society.

The information-rich social media world is reactive, not reflective. It emphasizes quick judgments and commentary rather than receptivity and listening.

Social media culture is one of likes, follows, shares, and posts—and as much of this is polarizing, it can alter how we think and feel.

Marlo said that social media addiction can have a significant impact on how we relate to others. It limits our ability to communicate and listen, especially if another’s story is longer than 2880 characters. “Social media addiction can significantly alter ways of relating to others partially by limiting our ability to communicate and listen to others’ stories—especially if another’s story is longer than 2880 characters!”

Younger Users Are Being Impacted

Monk mode is most likely to benefit younger users, both in terms of their schoolwork and social life. Many teens and young people prefer to communicate with each other via mobile devices.

Consuming social media by students can affect their social function. Social media can interfere with students’ ability create healthy romantic and consensual relationships. Dr. Adrienne White Baldwin, Assistant Professor in the School of Social Work, Virginia Commonwealth University said.

She explained that she has spoken to students about their social media consumption, and even those who spend a lot of time on social media do well in class—but they’ve already taken a monk mode approach, even if they didn’t actually know of the term.

Baldwin-White said that many people have discovered the benefits of having an established time when they can use social media.

Social media can be a time-waster, especially if it interferes with your work or studies.

Manjarrez said: “If your first action when you get up in the morning is to look at your smartphone and your last act of the day, if your social media scrolling brings you negative feelings and makes you think about how someone else lives their life and it’s very different from your own; or if your fear comes from missing out on important information and seeing others living a happy and fulfilling lifestyle that you don’t want. It’s important to stop thinking if your goal is clear but you are unable achieve it.

Setting goals is simple, but it depends on what you want to achieve.

This fall, I want to hike more in the forest near my home. It’s a 10-minute drive, and all I have to do is grab my car keys and head out. This goal, compared to others, such as writing a novel or researching artificial intelligence isn’t insurmountable. Only a few miles. The exercise and fresh air helps me to focus and think.

The problem I have isn’t that my hiking goal is too high Hard to believe?, it’s that other “goals” in life are far It is easier to understand. I might have a goal to check my Instagram feed and reply to comments, but that doesn’t require that I drive anywhere. I don’t need hiking shoes; I don’t even have to leave my chair.

The author’s latest book, entitled Only a Goal is RequiredThe author Jon Acuff takes on this problem of goal setting. The author explains how we are constantly distracted by things that can distract us from our goals, whether it is finding a better job, or developing a close friendship.

“Twitter doesn’t want you to start a business,” he writes in the book. “TikTok doesn’t want you to run a half-marathon.” His main point in the book is that goals can help us reach our full potential, but distractions can derail us. The simplest tasks can be done faster, more safely, and with less stress. Never say that. As I am waiting for my kids to come home from school I made myself an extremely difficult goal. I’m going to flip through 100 videos on TikTok over the next 20 minutes. Just keep on dreadscrolling mindlessly.

At the same time, while we don’t actually say that or think that consciously, many of us tend to gravitate toward easier tasks because…they are easier. Clay Scroggins, the author of another book I mentioned about how easily we fall for distractions because they’re so powerful.

Acuff quotes my favorite book, ” Four Thousand WeeksThe section compares social media applications to slot machines. The reason we keep on using these apps is that they offer a tiny reward with little effort.

When it comes to setting goals, productivity experts face a different challenge. Often in life, setting what are called “near goals” is smart. In my productivity book, I cover these near goals. It’s better to set a goal to hike for a mile because you might accomplish that, as opposed to starting off with a 10-mile hike and then never hiking at all — the goal is too monumental.

The social media has distorted this near-goal concept, which is covered in the best seller. Atomic HabitsAs humans, our tendency is to gravitate towards what makes life easier. When faced with stressful situations we always pick a route that avoids conflict.

Acuff makes it clear in his book that one must be deliberate about their goals. They should also choose the best ones and make a concerted effort to measure success. He describes a method that involves goals at different levels.

Curiously, the social media examples he gives don’t ever factor into the equation in reaching your potential (big surprise there!) — they are always mentioned as a way to derail potential.

Goal-setting requires foresight, patience and intentionality. The easy tasks, which may seem related to setting goals and achieving potential but are in fact a complete waste of time, must be eliminated.

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American and Israeli schools encourage parents to remove their children’s accounts on social media. They do this because they believe that Hamas terrorists could use popular apps as a weapon to spread the news of the brutal killings.

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Schools across the United States and Israel are urging parents to ensure their children delete TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and Telegram “immediately” in anticipation of the terrorist group Hamas broadcasting videos executing hostages it has taken in its attack against Israel.

Hamas’ spokesperson warned the group would post pictures of its captured civilians if Israel attacked Gazans without prior warning. White House: In addition to 150 Israelis taken hostage, there may also be at least twenty missing Americans among those held by Hamas. Hamas has been designated as a terrorist group by the U.S. Government, and some of its members have also been declared terrorists.

“Dear Parents: We have been notified that soon there will be videos sent of the hostages begging for their lives,” one school wrote in a memo to families reviewed by SME. “Please delete TikTok from your children’s phones. We cannot allow our children to see them.”

“It’s hard for us, it’s impossible for us, to digest all of the content displayed on various social networks,” said the note, which SMETranslated from Hebrew A separate letter in Hebrew called on parents to delete Facebook and Telegram from their kids’ phones, in addition to TikTok.

In New Jersey, this letter was sent to almost 1,000 parents and students at a private high school.

“Local psychologists have reached out to us and informed us that the Israeli government is urging parents to tell their children to delete Instagram and TikTok immediately,” the principal wrote in an email seen by SME. “We strongly advise our students to do the same as soon as possible. … As one Israeli psychologist noted, ‘The videos and testimonies we are currently exposed to are bigger and crueler than our souls can contain.’”

SMEFor security purposes, the school names have been removed. Scores of parents in Arizona, New York and Canada as well as the U.K., claimed on social media that they too had been given this guidance by schools.

“The videos and testimonies we are currently exposed to are bigger and crueler than our souls can contain.”

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Since Hamas waged its surprise attack on Israel on Saturday, gruesome videos of the violence have quickly gone viral on the world’s most widely-used social media platforms, testing the companies’ policies and processes aimed at preventing or removing harmful content. Graphic reels of bloodied women who’d been raped, kidnapped or killed—and whose corpses were then paraded around Gaza as soldiers sat on them and onlookers spit on them—have been easy to find across the major platforms.

News of schools blasting out letters urging families to delete popular apps prompted Senator Rick Scott to call on the platforms to remove troubling posts and accounts that “instill fear and create chaos” and prevent Hamas from monetizing them in any way. “We’ve seen reports of babies savagely beheaded. The parents of children are shot. The elderly dragged through the streets,” Scott said. “Now Iran-backed Hamas wants to inflict more terror by sharing videos of hostages begging for their lives in Gaza. Companies that operate social media MUST act. TikTok, Instagram (Meta), X and every other social media platform have an obligation to stop these terrorists from distributing posts containing violence and murder and collecting financial support for their terror operations.”

TikTok and Meta (which owns Facebook and Instagram) did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the schools’ concerns and how the companies are approaching the possibility that Hamas terrorists may try to weaponize mainstream platforms to spread these violent videos.

TikTok’s policies state that it does not allow “violent and hateful organizations or individuals” on the platform. The policy states that mass murderers, hate or criminal organizations, and violent extremists are all prohibited. Meta also prohibits organizations and individuals “organizing or advocating for violence against civilians… or engaging in systematic criminal operations.” That includes groups designated as terrorist organizations by the U.S. government, such as Hamas, or individuals designated as terrorists. “We remove praise, substantive support, and representation of [these] entities as well as their leaders, founders, or prominent members,” Meta’s rules state.

Politicians are not only concerned with viral videos that show violence. The sites have also spread misinformation regarding the war. This includes deceptive video clips about purported damage, victims and rescues. The misinformation spread because many people on the ground turned to social media for updates, especially X (formerly Twitter).

For example, European commissioner Thierry Breton demanded action from X on Tuesday to address “illegal content and disinformation” being spread in the EU—warning that the company’s moderation (or lack thereof) of this material could violate the bloc’s Digital Services Act. The Digital Services Act of the EU could be violated by the company’s moderation (or lack thereof) of this material. a letter to owner Elon Musk, Breton called on X to be clearer about what’s allowed on the site when it comes to terrorist or violent content and faster to take it down. The platform has been plagued by “fake and manipulated images and facts,” including “repurposed old images of unrelated armed conflicts or military footage that actually originated from video games,” Breton wrote, creating a “risk to public security and civic discourse.” Musk replied that “our policy is that everything is open source and transparent, an approach that I know the EU supports.”

At X, the conflict is arguably the company’s highest-stakes challenge yet since Musk took over Twitter one year ago. Its safety crew said this week that it has seen a surge of active users in the conflict area and that X leaders were deploying “the highest level of response” to protect discourse as the crisis intensifies. This includes the removal of new Hamas accounts, monitoring antisemitic speeches and working with industry anti-terrorism group, Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism to track problem trends. Its tolerance of graphic content appears to be high.

“We know that it’s sometimes incredibly difficult to see certain content, especially in moments like the one unfolding,” the safety team’s statement said. “In these situations, X believes that, while difficult, it’s in the public’s interest to understand what’s happening in real time.”

Rina Torchinsky contributed reporting.

Forbs: More From ForbesBillionaire Ackman and Others Promise Not to Hire Harvard Students who Signed a Letter Criticizing IsraelYou can also contact us by clicking here. Brian BushardForbs: More From ForbesBiden: Americans are among Hamas hostagesYou can also contact us by clicking here. Sara DornForbs: More From ForbesHamas Imprisons Israeli Soldiers And CiviliansYou can also contact us by clicking here. Antonio Pequeño IV

TikTok dominates the social media world.

It is because millions of users are downloading the app all around the globe. Recently, I discussed how powerful the algorithm was in knowing what viewers want and keeping them hooked.

You’ll probably hear TikTok mentioned instead of Facebook and Twitter when you ask someone about the app that is currently on top. It’s constantly trending.

That’s why a recent report by Statista Market Insights suggesting another app will dethrone TikTok by 2027 seemed so surprising.

You might have heard it.

That’s right, it’s Instagram.

One report explains all the important details about the past of these apps. Let’s start with Instagram, the underdog among the big three (which includes Facebook and TikTok — sadly, Twitter is in such steep decline of late that it barely registers on these reports).

Instagram’s growth has been about 53% during the last four-year period, reaching 1.33 billion monthly users. Facebook grew faster than its Meta-owned sister app, reaching 2.72 billion active users during the same time period. Curious to note that the growth rate was only 36%, but I’m sure Mark Zuckerberg isn’t complaining too much. Facebook still dominates the social media chain.

Then there’s TikTok. During that same four-year period, TikTok grew by 202% (thanks to all of those downloads I’m sure) to hit 1.92 billion users in 2023. Great — case closed, right? It’s clear why TikTok has become so popular on social media.

Keep that in mind. Statista predicts that Instagram’s growth will be 17.2% over the next 4 years (or 234 new users), compared with TikTok’s 17% (327 million). Facebook, claim they, is losing popularity and growth will only be 14% (or 391 million users).

It is important to measure growth rates because it determines what trends are actually happening over time and not just a feeling. Statista’s report shows that Instagram is expected to grow much faster than TikTok or Facebook even though the number of users will be lower.

Okay, let’s parse this out a bit. What’s really happening?

The growth rate for TikTok seems to be a big anomaly. 202% is phenomenal growth for an app that doesn’t really do anything but show you videos one after the other. You can talk about how video has become a trend across apps or our short attention spans. But the fact is, TikTok is a fad.

Instagram, meanwhile, has an extensive feature set. It’s implanted into culture in a way that’s hard to deny. Stories, photo galleries, videos, pithy statements — Instagram has it all. Zuckerberg’s response to Elon Musk’s recent cage match challenge (which may have been in jest) was telling. “Send me the location,” he posted.

TikTok has the same effect as an energy beverage that gets you hooked for a little while. Instagram is coffee. TikTok’s algorithm, while not perfect, is certainly impressive. Instagram is a better option, it can be used to build a brand and for videos and photos, plus, its algorithm has lasted longer than TikTok.

You can have fun watching to see whether the predictions are accurate.

It was 40 years ago this month that the British pop trio (now a duo) Bananarama released their hit single “Cruel Summer,” a song that actually looked at the darker side of the season—noting the oppressive heat, and the loneliness that can come when your friends are away likely having a good time without you.

The song has been an ode for summer and could even have become the theme tune of the summer 2020, when the pandemic is likely to disrupt many vacation plans.

The Song of Summer: A History

Summer song history predates it by only about 100 years. It was 1883, when sales of sheet music began to increase during summer. In the early part of the 20th century the music industry was basically born, as the public began adopting phonographs.

The first true song of summer is arguably Irving Berlin’s “My Wife’s Gone to the Country—Hooray! Hooray!” Released in 1909, it was arguably as risqué for the day as the summer songs to come.

There have been countless summer anthems over the years, from Frank Sinatra’s “Summer Wind” to The Lovin’ Spoonful’s “Summer in the City” to Don Henley’s “The Boys of Summer” to “Hot Girl Summer” by Megan Thee Stallion ft. Nicki Minaj & Ty Dolla $ign.

Enjoying Summer TV

There will always be songs for summer, the time of BBQs, beach parties and warm weather. But the way in which new music is discovered is changing. For most of the 20th century, summer songs were likely heard first on radio.

Bruce Barber is the professional in residence at 88.7 WNHU and the general manager of WNHU.

Barber said, “There used to be a time where the song associated with summer would have been the one you heard on the radio the entire summer.” Music discovery is different now, thanks to smart phones and social networks.

YouTube, TikTok or even Twitter can play as big a part in determining which song is the most popular this summer as top-40 radio stations.

Barber stated that “we’ve seen the TikTok videos were watched by a lot of people and can really help make a tune go viral, which was impossible with radio.” “It is the new platforms and apps on their smart phones where young people are finding the summer songs—as opposed to on the transistor radio.”

International Songs And Smaller artists Getting Notified

There was also a time when established artists—like the aforementioned Frank Sinatra and Don Henley, not to mention the likes of Bryan Adams, Taylor Swift and Garth Brooks—may have had an unfair advantage when it came to releasing a summer anthem.

Though a few artists could use their summer song to break through, like Bananarama and DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince, by releasing a summertime classic, smaller artists didn’t stand a chance. The streaming services and social media have helped level the playing field.

Barber said that social media is helping international music to reach a wider audience.

This helps to explain why K-Pop, from South Korea, and other European artists can stand out. Back in the day, music like this would have been relegated into the import or, worse yet, world music section at a record shop. Such music is now able to go viral, thanks in part to a TikTok-style video.

Barber stated that “the world of Music is becoming smaller due to the social media and smartphones, but we are still in Wild West territory when it comes music discovery.” Today, it is not difficult for smaller artists you’ve never heard to go viral. That could mean that we will hear some fantastic summer songs.

Topline

A consumer advocacy group has filed a formal complaint with the European Commission about the spread of false crypto ads across social media. The group also complained to TikTok.com, Twitter and YouTube.

The Key Facts

Watch Out For

Regulators could, at EU and national levels, act upon the complaints made against social platforms. They may also take regulatory action in order to punish companies for their actions or to force them into changing. It’s unclear whether they will choose to do so or on what time scale that might happen if they do.

Tangent

BEUC asked also the network of European Consumer Authorities to assess the effectiveness of the existing measures in protecting consumers from unfair practices such as misleading crypto advertisements. It is the European Commission, one of the EU’s three core institutions and the driving force behind new regulations and legislation of global significance. Though the bloc has recently approved the world’s first comprehensive set of crypto rules—which become law in 2024—Goyens said the legislation “does not apply to the social media companies benefitting from the advertising of crypto at the expense of consumers,” leaving a potential space for future regulation.

News Peg

Although cryptocurrencies aren’t particularly new, their popularity has increased in the last few years. Many aspects of the industry do not conform to existing laws or regulations. This leaves legislators or regulators, who have failed to or refused to follow the pace of this sector, scrambling in order to keep up. With the growth of interest, there has been an increase in unpredictability and volatility, fraud, misinformation, and deceptive marketing. Kim Kardashian and Lindsay Lohan are just a few of the high profile celebrities who promote crypto tokens and hype to followers. Regulators say that this may be against the law. The collapse of key institutions, such as Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX, and allegations of widespread misconduct from Binance has highlighted the lack of enforcement and signaled the starting gun for enforcers taking the industry seriously.

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What is the real danger? Social media scams: The BEUC (Great social media crypto-con)

Kim Kardashian Was Busted for Hyping SME (SME).

Earlier than Jack Teixeria, the 21-year-old junior-ranking US Nationwide Guard airman was arrested in April for leaking categorised Pentagon paperwork, a lot of People might have by no means heard of Discord, the voice-over IP (VoIP) and immediate messaging social platform. Although it has about 150 million month-to-month energetic customers because it was based in 2015, it’s largely utilized by avid gamers.

Discord is only one of a number of trendy communication providers that now embrace Skype, Zoom, Microsoft Groups, Sign, Slack, and Notion – amongst others. All of these platforms permit some type of direct communication, as do Fb, Twitter, TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat, Telegram, Fact Social, and others.

It’s now more and more widespread for a pal, relative, or colleague to recommend to hit them up on a platform you’ll have by no means used or barely heard of – and it typically means putting in after which signing up for one more technique to talk.

What occurred to good outdated texting, emails, or cellphone calls?

“Are there too many platforms? Most likely sure, however they serve completely different functions and attraction to completely different audiences and demographics,” defined Susan Schreiner, know-how analyst at C4 Tendencies.

From Social Connections To Communication Platform

Everybody in all probability now is aware of somebody who solely prefers to speak through Fb or somebody who appears to solely interact through Twitter. Likewise, when attempting to attach with colleagues Zoom has changed the normal convention name.

“Communication has all the time advanced, from the telegraph to the phone to smartphones and from snail mail to fax after which e mail. It is protected to say, nevertheless, our world has seen its greatest change because the Web and social media made its mark,” stated Jason Mollica, professorial lecturer and program director at American College’s Faculty of Communication.

This may additionally add challenges.

Do you really want to put in Slack as a result of one colleague makes use of it, whereas one other prefers Sign? The identical is true of attempting to handle so many social media accounts.

Connecting with folks has by no means been simpler, but it surely additionally requires a plethora of platforms.

“From a person standpoint, being on each social community does an individual little good,” Mollica added. “It is essential to decide on these networks which might be greatest for you. You do not have to be on any platform, although.”

Sure, Blame the Pandemic

This oversaturation of communication instruments had slowly been constructing, but it surely all modified when the nation shut down simply over three years in the past initially of the worldwide Covid-19 pandemic. Zoom provided digital face-to-face conferences, and social media allowed everybody to remain related.

Now within the post-pandemic world, we’re caught with an more and more fragmented communication panorama.

“Maybe the over-reliance on social media platforms is a consequence of the pandemic,” stated Schreiner. “For shut to 2 years Zoom, Skype, Groups, and different platforms turned lifesavers to ameliorate loneliness. In a single day in addition they emerged as platforms to collaborate and conduct enterprise. On an enterprise stage, completely different organizations chosen their most popular platform based mostly on their very own standards.”

Because of this, we’re now more and more liable to shedding that direct human interplay and conversational talents that may’t get replaced by posting on TikTok or Instagram, Schreiner added. She additional warned that it appears as if folks have forgotten how one can choose up the cellphone and name a pal to share one’s day relatively than only a superficial posting.

At problem is that every new service tries to do one thing a bit completely different from previous platforms.

“I all the time advise college students and professionals to concentrate on what every social community affords,” Mollica advised. “It is true that TikTok is extra well-liked with one group, however Twitter and Instagram nonetheless maintain robust with others. Fb will not be as robust because it was ten years in the past. Regardless, folks around the globe are nonetheless sharing updates.”

Can The Market Assist So Many Platforms?

Simply as there may be now a debate as as to if the market can help so many streaming providers, the query to ask is how can so many social communication platforms coexist. The brief reply is that we should always count on to see some consolidation within the close to future.

“Virtually each new know-how goes by means of an evolutionary part the place there’s a proliferation of merchandise,” Schreiner continued. “Bear in mind the early days of cellphones, when on a tradeshow flooring one may see dozens of manufacturers? Quick ahead to in the present day with a remaining few manufacturers vying for his or her share of the smartphone market. Equally, these are nonetheless the early days for social media platforms – they usually too shall be changed with the but to emerge subsequent new shiny platform.”

And that’s in all probability good not simply because it’s laborious to handle so many providers, however that there’s a threat concerned in having a lot private info “on the market” on an growing variety of platforms.

“Having too many accounts is usually a safety threat. One can attempt to be vigilant, however even when you have 4 accounts, a person can nonetheless see their account hacked,” warned Mollica.

“Who hasn’t been photo-bombed on Zoom,” added Schreiner. “As we glance to the long run it will appear {that a} widespread safety protocol throughout platforms would possibly make sense.”

That could be only one a part of the evolutionary part of social media. However, we nonetheless should not get too comfy with each start-up or new platform. Some will turn out to be the subsequent Fb, whereas others are destined to be one other Friendster.

“We’re not going to see social media disappear,” stated Mollica. “That is why it is essential to grasp how these networks can give you the results you want and the worth they convey over time.”

It is a warning sign if the company’s valuation drops dramatically. Check that — it’s a sign the company is Cratering.

Fidelity recently marked down Twitter’s value to just 33% of the original price. This makes me wonder if Elon Musk purchased a lemon from a garage-sale run by an eighth grader. In other words, it wasn’t a wise purchase.

According to Reuters: “Fidelity’s…stake in Twitter, which now exists under Musk’s X Holdings Corp, was valued at nearly $6.55 million as of April 28, compared with $7.8 million as of Jan. 31 and almost $8.63 million at November-end.”

Consider the consequences. Musk purchased the social media giant for $44B back in October. According to Fidelity, if the value of Twitter has fallen by a third from its original price (about 15B), then it is rapidly losing money.

Bad decisions are to blame for the ongoing collapse. Let’s start with the blue check. I recently signed up for the check again because I wanted to do some longer posts, but it’s more of an experiment than anything. I’m curious about the dumpster fire. If you pay $8 for longer posts, extra authentication and…a few other things that don’t matter that much to me, does it seem like the $8 per month is worth it?

Not really. I’m not experiencing an incredible return on my investment so far. According to other people, I’m not the only one who feels this way. The vanity symbol is nice, but I don’t want to pay this much for it. I’m not sure what can save Twitter at this point, but certainly there must be some features Musk could add that make it more compelling.

A second problem of grave importance? Technology is questionable. It’s taking giant steps backwards, as we all witnessed when Ron DeSantis announced his presidential run on Twitter Spaces and crashed the servers before most of us could even login. The best thing to do is keep all your engineers on board.

Attracting an alt-right crowd, making wild claims about conspiracy theories, not bothering to add any useful features people care about, changing your name to create even more confusion, watching on the sidelines as TikTok assumes world domination — that’s one way to crash and burn.

Twitter has remained my favorite application, despite the outrage. I like micro-blogging; I’m not drawn to short videos. I’d rather share links than have a long conversation. Still, I have some hope for a turnaround. Maybe under the leadership of a new CEO. Let’s be honest, I’m not sure how it could get worse. Musk is a master at rebounding.

There’s no silver lining in all of this so far. Twitter’s dark clouds are a clear sign of a company in total and complete chaos.

Through all of the missteps, I’m still using it. I still think there’s a way to save the company and offer real value.

I don’t think the current owner knows how to rescue the firm, but maybe a savior will emerge. It’s not too late to hope.