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Kanye West: followers galore, yet social media’s unlikely critic Kanye West: followers galore, yet social media’s unlikely critic
(about 2 months later)
Kanye West has tweeted a series of thoughts on social media and self-esteem, along with a screen grab of a conversation with Jack Dorsey, Twitter’s CEO, who agrees that it’s time to change a system that no longer works as it should or once did. “Social media can be good but we have to hold the heads responsible for the psychological damage it sometimes causes,” wrote West, linking to a video, posted to Instagram, of Denzel Washington saying that young people should turn off social media.Kanye West has tweeted a series of thoughts on social media and self-esteem, along with a screen grab of a conversation with Jack Dorsey, Twitter’s CEO, who agrees that it’s time to change a system that no longer works as it should or once did. “Social media can be good but we have to hold the heads responsible for the psychological damage it sometimes causes,” wrote West, linking to a video, posted to Instagram, of Denzel Washington saying that young people should turn off social media.
Perhaps as a test run for his promised 2024 US presidential bid, instead of simply observing the problem, West offered a solution: “We should be able to participate in social media without having to show how many followers or likes we have. Just like how we can turn off the comments, we should be able to turn off the display of followers. This has an intense negative impact on our self-worth.” You could view that as someone with more than 28 million followers realising that it’s hard to have a proper conversation over a cacophony of bots, bros and snowflakes, but it sounds like the start of a sensible and practical discussion about change.Perhaps as a test run for his promised 2024 US presidential bid, instead of simply observing the problem, West offered a solution: “We should be able to participate in social media without having to show how many followers or likes we have. Just like how we can turn off the comments, we should be able to turn off the display of followers. This has an intense negative impact on our self-worth.” You could view that as someone with more than 28 million followers realising that it’s hard to have a proper conversation over a cacophony of bots, bros and snowflakes, but it sounds like the start of a sensible and practical discussion about change.
In the text conversation with West, Dorsey set out what Twitter should be aiming for. He said that the need for more followers skewed people’s incentives for tweeting. Certainly, it has made the public conversation more crude and more polarised and shown the potentially catastrophic effects of oversimplification. “We want to incentivise contribution to the global conversation and consciousness,” Dorsey explained. The idea that metrics be removed is a radical one, particularly if we take away all markers of impact and scale. It would replace pandering to an audience with a guessing game as to who’s listening: essentially, we’d all be shouting into the void, unsure of whether anyone is there or not. Would that produce some kind of Black Mirror hellhole or would it be a comparative utopia?In the text conversation with West, Dorsey set out what Twitter should be aiming for. He said that the need for more followers skewed people’s incentives for tweeting. Certainly, it has made the public conversation more crude and more polarised and shown the potentially catastrophic effects of oversimplification. “We want to incentivise contribution to the global conversation and consciousness,” Dorsey explained. The idea that metrics be removed is a radical one, particularly if we take away all markers of impact and scale. It would replace pandering to an audience with a guessing game as to who’s listening: essentially, we’d all be shouting into the void, unsure of whether anyone is there or not. Would that produce some kind of Black Mirror hellhole or would it be a comparative utopia?
There are more and more reports of our growing lack of contentment and last week the Girlguiding organisation published a survey stating that the happiness of girls and young women is in sharp decline, in part, it is suggested, because they are outside less and online more. Life online, in its current state, is chipping away at everyone’s self-worth and the need for change is becoming urgent, wherever that change may come from.There are more and more reports of our growing lack of contentment and last week the Girlguiding organisation published a survey stating that the happiness of girls and young women is in sharp decline, in part, it is suggested, because they are outside less and online more. Life online, in its current state, is chipping away at everyone’s self-worth and the need for change is becoming urgent, wherever that change may come from.
Gogglebox’s June Bernicoff is the true star on TVGogglebox’s June Bernicoff is the true star on TV
TV’s current blockbuster period is producing so many huge dramas that the only way to keep up is to give up work and social commitments and lock oneself in the house with an infinite supply of energy drinks. Still, with Toni Collette working through polyamory in Wanderlust, Hugo Blick holding the international criminal court to account with Black Earth Rising and a stream of boundary-pushing Netflix and Amazon Emmy winners, there’s still one non-drama that makes it into the must-sees: Gogglebox.TV’s current blockbuster period is producing so many huge dramas that the only way to keep up is to give up work and social commitments and lock oneself in the house with an infinite supply of energy drinks. Still, with Toni Collette working through polyamory in Wanderlust, Hugo Blick holding the international criminal court to account with Black Earth Rising and a stream of boundary-pushing Netflix and Amazon Emmy winners, there’s still one non-drama that makes it into the must-sees: Gogglebox.
Even now, in its 12th series, Gogglebox is essential viewing. It allows viewers to cram in everything they didn’t have time to see without resorting to drastic isolation measures; I watched pretty much all of Doctor Foster and Marcella through Gogglebox, which was far more time-efficient than diving into the actual series. It’s also a weekly snapshot of the state of Britain, with a look at what people from all over the country, from all walks of life, think about what’s going on.Even now, in its 12th series, Gogglebox is essential viewing. It allows viewers to cram in everything they didn’t have time to see without resorting to drastic isolation measures; I watched pretty much all of Doctor Foster and Marcella through Gogglebox, which was far more time-efficient than diving into the actual series. It’s also a weekly snapshot of the state of Britain, with a look at what people from all over the country, from all walks of life, think about what’s going on.
My favourite Goggleboxers shift from week to week, but the greatest of all were Leon and June Bernicoff, who were kind, funny and furiously indignant about the country under the Tories. Leon died aged 83 last December last year and June decided not to be on the show without him. I miss them both. On Friday, June appeared on This Morning to give a gorgeous interview about Leon and the book she’s written about their life together, which spanned six decades. “Quite honestly,” she said, “I can’t imagine life without him.” At that point, I must have got something in my eye.My favourite Goggleboxers shift from week to week, but the greatest of all were Leon and June Bernicoff, who were kind, funny and furiously indignant about the country under the Tories. Leon died aged 83 last December last year and June decided not to be on the show without him. I miss them both. On Friday, June appeared on This Morning to give a gorgeous interview about Leon and the book she’s written about their life together, which spanned six decades. “Quite honestly,” she said, “I can’t imagine life without him.” At that point, I must have got something in my eye.
Lady Leshurr: out, black and proudLady Leshurr: out, black and proud
The rapper and singer Lady Leshurr has appeared as the “first pansexual cover star” of Gay Times magazine. In the accompanying interview, she talks about being outed on Twitter and how she was advised by an ex-manager that coming out wouldn’t be “a good look” for her career. “Representation is really, really important because there’s only a minority of us,” she said. “I don’t know anybody else that’s black, British and gay that really came out in the music industry and is wearing it proud except me and MNEK.”The rapper and singer Lady Leshurr has appeared as the “first pansexual cover star” of Gay Times magazine. In the accompanying interview, she talks about being outed on Twitter and how she was advised by an ex-manager that coming out wouldn’t be “a good look” for her career. “Representation is really, really important because there’s only a minority of us,” she said. “I don’t know anybody else that’s black, British and gay that really came out in the music industry and is wearing it proud except me and MNEK.”
It’s a point that MNEK has been making recently, too, telling Nihal Arthanayake on Radio 5 Live about how fans relate to him, as a gay man and a person of colour. “As I was figuring stuff out for this record, I didn’t always see someone that I could relate to, that would tell me that being black and gay is OK,” he said. “This is where I’m at and this is gonna help someone else figure their stuff out. It gives my career a lot more purpose than just making songs.”It’s a point that MNEK has been making recently, too, telling Nihal Arthanayake on Radio 5 Live about how fans relate to him, as a gay man and a person of colour. “As I was figuring stuff out for this record, I didn’t always see someone that I could relate to, that would tell me that being black and gay is OK,” he said. “This is where I’m at and this is gonna help someone else figure their stuff out. It gives my career a lot more purpose than just making songs.”
It’s an elegant reminder of something that is too often taken as a given: that we need to see ourselves in others and that representation really does matter.It’s an elegant reminder of something that is too often taken as a given: that we need to see ourselves in others and that representation really does matter.
• Rebecca Nicholson is an Observer columnist• Rebecca Nicholson is an Observer columnist
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