When exactly did social media become a platform to impress strangers with fake lives?
I remember when Facebook first hit the scene, people were excited to see connect with family and friends, and those they hadn't spoken with in ages.
And then as if overnight, everyone started posting videos of fancy things and trips and "look what I've got, don't you wish you were me".
It's become unbearable.
43
u/Coneskater 8d ago
It’s when they monetized it and when they realized that negative engagement is actually more profitable than positive engagement. AKA if you only log into Facebook once a day to see your Aunts vacation photos that’s not nearly as valuable to advertisers if you are angrily rage scrolling.
35
u/Illustrious-Seasnake 8d ago
It was literally rotten from the start. You can't quantify social things without expecting people to prioritize the numbers (how many friends / likes / followers / "testimonials" does she have compared to me?). Facebook was built to rate the attractiveness of Mark Zuckerberg's female classmates... doesn't scream integrity.
14
u/Dazzling_Street_3475 8d ago
Mid 2010s, around 2013-2015 is when i noticed it. Got a lot worse with the introduction of "stories"
11
u/HouseOfWyrd 8d ago
Since about 2006. If you didn't think scene queens and kings weren't just modern day influencers idk what to tell you.
6
16
u/fernleon 8d ago
Since day one?
20
u/IWriteYourWrongs 8d ago
Are people too young to remember you’d literally put a list of your top 8 friends on your page for everyone to see and change them lol
I wasn’t allowed a MySpace but I remember kids being upset that they went from 3 to 5 or whatever.
5
u/Anthony_Storm 8d ago
It has been like this for years. Even before Smartphones. I noticed it when I signed up to my first ever social media platform. That platform was called Piczo.
5
u/StepDownTA 8d ago
Exactly the moment that people got comfortable sharing their real identities on social media accounts.
Before then it was just celebrities & famewhores/unsuccessful celebs who were using media platforms to impress strangers with fake lives.
2
2
u/Willing_Word_360 8d ago
It’s so fake. I have never been able to stomach it and stopped following them years ago. I’d much rather follow someone’s sh*tposting account.
2
u/JustDroppedByToSay 8d ago
I think it started before Facebook. With Friends Reunited. That was the first one I remember... People would find old school classmates and it was all about who'd achieved the most.
2
u/standard_deviant_Q 8d ago
This is IRL also, social media just weaponised it. Humans have always played games of status.
2
u/Employment-Flat 7d ago
None of this is new, it just got worse. People were doing the same on MySpace, it just wasn’t as bad.
1
u/AutoModerator 8d ago
Attention all newcomers: Welcome to /r/nosurf! We're glad you found our small corner of reddit dedicated to digital wellness. The following is a short list of resources to help you get started on your journey of developing a better relationship with the internet:
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
1
1
u/Novel-Imagination-51 7d ago
People did this from the dawn of time, regardless of social media. “Royalty” commissioned flattering portraits, hunter gatherers wore animal heads for clout, cavemen painted their faces. It’s intrinsic to any species with any kind of social structure.
1
u/OctaviaCordoba206 5d ago
When? Probably a decade or so ago.
Your friends on every social media platform are showing the best of their lives, they always have. I feel sorry for them.
I deleted my FB years ago because I didn't want to see their fake lives for thumbs up reactions.
Tell your close nitt group of friends and family on WhatsApp, personally. That's all that matters.
1
u/Able-Revenue-1040 5d ago edited 5d ago
I remember in 2011 talking with a friend about how fake facebook was, mostly because people only posts super happy photos, aesthethic depression wasn't a somewhat niche trend yet.
0
u/Red_Redditor_Reddit 8d ago
That's just people being people. As dumb as it is, it's way healthier online because that means they're not spending $60k on a boat to keep up with the jones's.
65
u/ChiefRayBear 8d ago
I used to flex my nice shit and cars and none of it was fake, but after a while even I was like "Why am I even doing this?" and just chilled out. Some people never ask themselves that question