Dark Brandon is fandom culture

But I think perhaps the main element in Musk’s radicalization is simply the feedback loop of the internet - Musk has millions of fan-boys cheering on his every lurch to the right, every tweet about immigration or Anthony Fauci or the ‘woke mind virus’. He’s a transhumanist enslaved by his own machine, a wizard deceived by the demon algorithm which ... See more

Internet subcultures, by contrast, are building grand narratives and meme worlds that help people feel their way through the chaos that’s currently unfolding. These stories cut deep, down to the most foundational questions of race and religion and destiny. We shouldn’t be too surprised that complex conspiracy theories, intergenerational trauma, and... See more

What’s amazing is that things like hashtag design—these essentially ad hoc experiments in digital architecture—have shaped so much of our political discourse. Our world would be different if Anonymous hadn’t been the default username on 4chan, or if every social media platform didn’t center on the personal profile, or if YouTube algorithms didn’t s... See more