I'm trapped in my social media algorithm
Is the world really only comprised of German shepherd owners and fitness influencers?
My online life is unwillingly ensconced in an algorithm showcasing fitness girlies hawking their “groundbreaking activewear lines” and “wellness” coaches advertising magic supplements to cure anxiety.
I. Am. So. Over. Instagram.
(And don’t get me started on TikTok because I do believe there is some weird China spy sh*t going on there… p.s. this is not an invitation to debate, I think we can all agree it is at the very least a supreme time-waster.)
I miss seeing pictures of my friends, family, and acquaintances on the occasion I do scroll.
My relationship with social media now tends to be of the “post and ghost” variety. I’m the last one to “like” my husband’s pictures because despite us sharing a bed I never see his posts in my feed.
Instead, I see reels of dog training and booty-building tips and how to manage anxiety and now who the heck is this Mormon mommy blogger and her Amazon fashion finds? It appears strangers are all I follow. Except I don’t remember tapping follow.
I have another theory on my Insta-issues.
Maybe I’m tired of my algorithm because it is a reflection of the life I once wanted to live.
Until I discovered I didn’t.
Chasing wellness, becoming the fittest, and discovering ways to manage anxiety used to rule my day-to-day. While I still peruse these subjects, I’m more interested in paving my way as of late — doing my own research, learning from trusted sources, and actually implementing lifestyle changes.
Algorithms, while seen as helpful by some — I agree seeing content relevant to our lives is better than scrolling nonsense) — are merely another way to highly target ads through personalization (cleverly disguised data collecting) and a false sense of community.
The danger here is thinking we live in a world comprised of only our interests, an echo chamber of our own beliefs.
We miss out on new ideas. Updates from friends and family. Diversity. The struggles others face that we have yet to understand or open our hearts to.
I’m combatting this by challenging myself with books and podcasts centered on other perspectives, not just on what I agree with. So far I’ve gained a deeper understanding of those choosing to leave organized religion and learning about plant medicine, both topics I was terrified of and so against before (I no longer attend church, and I’m a microdosing and cannabis advocate — all from opening my mind, and my feed).
Who knows what else I will discover? I’m ready to watch my feed change as Meta/Apple/Google/Alexa continues to collect my new data for said personalized recommendations.
What’s in YOUR feed? Feel free to chime in below — comments on this post are open for subscribers and free readers alike.