new internet

It's interesting to see how many people put "Twitter refugee" or something similar in their Bsky bios. Have people done that before when migrating to new platforms? I don't recall seeing "Friendster refugee" or "MySpace refugee" on newer platforms in the 00s.

The internet really w as better, back before it turned into “five giant websites, each filled with screenshots of text from the other four.”

I think we see a decline in the big "open sea" social networks, replaced increasingly by fragmented silos. I don't know what will happen to Twitter, but if Elon's shenanigans cause it to fail I don't think we'll ever see anything quite like it take its place:

Users are leaving X, the most divisive and shouty social media platform, and it’s unlikely that alternatives like Bluesky will replace it. The era when arguing about politics on social media was America’s national pastime may be drawing to a close, with public discussions replaced by small group chats. With the decline of public argument platforms... See more

No, I think this will all end, as T.S Eliot said, with a whimper. People will simply lose interest and walk away. Because the internet now is boring . People spend all day scrolling because they are trying to find what isn’t there anymore. The authenticity, the genuinely human moments, the fun.