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Friendster Crash 2002
Friendster launched in 2002 but by 2003 the influx of users overwhelmed their servers causing crashes, horrible load times, and overall bad UX. Hootsuite The crash of Friendster was a huge wake up call for research funding and development. The crash showed that if you build it the people will come. You just have to build it better than friendster. Massive capital poured into social media apps of every kind. -
YouTube Launches Video Sharing
In 2005 YouTube launches video sharing which allows people to upload pretty much anything to YouTube with very little oversight. The partner program launches 2 years later allowing creators to be paid for views. Hootsuite This lack of oversight meant anything could be monetized even racist slurs and hateful rants which led creators to chase money from the lowest common denominator. This practice continued until the 2016 "YouTube Adpocolypse" -
YouTube partnership Launched
in 2007 the YouTube partnership program was launched spurring the rise of the social influncer. This meant everyday people could wield massive power for the small cost of virality. In the subsequent years many sections of YouTube would become home to unscrupulous actors of every stripe. Many would sacrifice their well being, social status, and morals for a chance at virality. Only to find themselves completely unable to handle the constant attention and scrutiny of public life. -
Periscope Livestreaming
in 2015 Periscope introduced livstreaming to the world. This added a completely new layer to video production because the creator could interact with the audience in real time. This innovation flowered in several directions, all used for different purposes. YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Academia, Zoom, Only Fans, etc, etc....embraced the streaming model. The problem with livestreaming is there's no second takes, and once its out there it belongs to the internet. -
YouTube Adpocalypse
In 2016 YouTube decided to take action and stop the wild west style of censorship they had been taking. Over 25,000 channels were excised from the platform according to Forbes Channels that were not removed saw advertising revenue dip by up to 80%. Many blame political backlash over the outcome of 2016 election for the restrictions. -
Fake News Enters the Ring
2016 the presidential election brought increased scrutiny to false stories with malicious intent and how fast they spread via social media. Massive action was taken across multiple platforms to sanitize content and label it false or misleading. These changes made much of the general public suspicious of social media. People fled traditional apps like Facebook and Twitter, to a new app called Parlor. Parlor was swiftly shut down and the concerns of users grew. Did the state control Social Media? -
White House Press Secretary Booted From Twitter
In 2021 White House Press Secretary Kelly Ann Conway had her Twitter account suspended for highlighting a story about a laptop belonging to Hunter Biden. Though the laptop had been authenticated by the intelligence agencies previously, Twitter claimed she was spreading false information and suspended her account For many already suspicious of a Big Tech/State collaboration this eroneous suspension solidified their worst fears. Proof Tech giants and the state could not be trusted moving forward. -
300 Words on the Subject
link to my paper https://1drv.ms/w/s!AtO1kobovjEpwm7zOFFN5vU6hpbl?e=d7QgGG the link is not active but if you highlight it and right click you can access the Word doc