Social Media and the Deterioration of Empathy
Deconstructing the false stories we've been sold
Social media is molding the deepest recesses of our psyche in ways we can’t begin to fathom. Every time we use social media, we’re choosing passive subjugation over the creative expression of our soul. Mass control isn’t happening through force, it’s happening through pleasure. As Aldous Huxley eloquently predicted in Brave New World.
📱What’s Social Media Trying to Accomplish?
Stories reassure us. They reduce the world to a single narrative. They close the loop of confusion. And they’re exactly how we shoot ourselves in the foot. To break the social media loop is to become conscious of the stories we have about it. Stories that have been marketed to us in a million subtle ways by mega-corporations with billions in resources.
I scraped the mission statements of popular social media sites. The most common stories are:
🌐 Meta / Facebook
Connection is evolving and so are we.
The metaverse is the next evolution of social connection.
Let's find more that brings us together.
Facebook helps you connect with friends, family, and communities of people who share your interests.
Feel closer to those that matter.
Connect with the people you care about most. It is your shared space to customize and express what’s on your mind and share content and experiences at the moment together on any device, anytime, anywhere.
🏙 Instagram
Bringing you closer to the people and things you love.
We foster a safe and inclusive community where people can express themselves, feel closer to anyone they care about, and turn a passion into a living.
🐦 Twitter
Twitter is an open service that’s home to a world of diverse people, perspectives, ideas, and information.
Our company is built on community. Together, we can be a force for good.
It’s all about connection, community, and self-expression. I’d argue that we’d be more connected, find our communities and express ourselves more effectively without social media. It’s necessary to state one more statistic on how Instagram is leading to an epidemic of depression, isolation, and insecurities among teenagers.
What is isolation but the opposite of connection? What is insecurity but the opposite of unfettered self-expression? What is community but the opposite of loneliness?
You see. The stories are lies. We’re being convinced that social media is the way to stay connected, to find a tribe, and to express ourselves, while not noticing that it’s doing the exact opposite in every instance.
🙋♂️Asking Better Questions About Social Media
And it’s not our fault. These stories are so compelling that they’re getting us to act contrary to our own well-being.
What if we started asking more critical questions:
What does it mean to stay connected?
Are there better ways to stay connected?
Do we feel more or less connected after using social media?’
Why is culture infatuated with social media?
Do social media companies have our best interests in mind?
Is endlessly scrolling the best way to stay informed?
How might I discern which content is worth consuming?
Is my life better because of social media?
Have our relationships improved as a result of social media?
Am I searching for validation/approval through likes and engagement?
Why am I posting on social media?
Is social media leading to more or less meaning in my life?
Is social media helping me reconcile differences with people that I disagree with?
Do I feel more connected to my purpose in life through the use of social media?
Is social media helping me meet up with people IRL?
Sure there are benefits to social media, but what are the costs?
Doing so may break down some of the stories that are keeping us trapped. I invite you to take some time and journal about any of these questions that stand out to you.
🫂 Where’s the Empathy?
I find myself drowning in the endless array of choices. Life feels uncertain, chaotic, even mad. And as I fall into the black hole of social media my only response is to like, comment, or subscribe. Furthermore, the algorithm is turning my feed into a reality distortion field. My network has turned into a form of confirmation bias. The shameful aspects of myself (validation, conformity, virtue signaling, etc.) are being optimized for.
I go traveling around Central America for 5 months and meet people from every background. Then I return to social media and only find echo chambers.
How are we dealing with this complexity? Where does empathy come in? Where’s the shared humanity?