It snowed in New Orleans. Almost a whole foot of snow! Being from Connecticut and living in central New York, I know a thing or two about snow, but if I'm being honest, I'm trying to remember the last time I saw up to 10 inches of it here where I live. Though snow in New Orleans is surprising, I welcomed the snow day moments that came across my social media feed amongst the barrage of politics in our descent into a dystopian future much like Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler, prolific writer and prophet that she was.
I recently posted on Facebook and on my newsletter how last week was a long month. We are still only in January, and it feels like we've lived a year already. There's a lot of talk about boycotting businesses and leaving social media in the wake of DEI initiatives being rolled back and the fiasco of social media giants joining their collective minds to align with this new administration.
Recently, I read a heartfelt blog post about leaving Facebook and Instagram. It stirred up some of my own feelings that I've had for a while now. Is it time to leave? And what do I do as an artist and entrepreneur to stay connected to the larger world around me? I went to Facebook and started scrolling through my posts. I've been on Facebook since around 2004 when it expanded from Harvard-only students to other colleges and universities. Back when a college email was required to be on Facebook, it felt like a space where I could not only connect with my peers but also, someplace I could experiment with my voice. Eventually, it would be a platform where I could promote my work, start groups to support my arts community and share my growth as an artist.
What I didn't account for when I joined Facebook is that over the years, it would grow this much, opening up to the entire world and expanding into what we know now as Meta, a universe of social media apps that erase borders and connect people from around the globe. Who knew I could meet folks in Australia through a virtual open mic I found out about through Instagram or see what's happening with folks in the UK I've shared space with and want to stay connected to? Who knew I'd find some of the friends I had in middle school and be Facebook friends with them?
At the same time, I can't tell you the last post I saw from most of the folks on my "friends" list and that's not for trying. Now I see more suggestions for "follows" than posts from many folks I want to hear from. This last week I noticed that I was seeing more conservative-themed posts than normal. Who knew these apps would turn from a place of conversation to one riddled with ads? Who knew 'influencer' would become a job title? But also, who knew how divisive, how misinformed, how hateful social media spaces could become? If there's any doubt, often, all someone has to do is visit a comment section.
Certainly, none of those questions I'm raising happened overnight. But this point in time feels like a tipping point for me. Now, I'm working on archiving the last twenty years of my presence on Facebook. I've started leaning into other platforms…starting a Substack account, getting on Bluesky, posting more on my Patreon, and encouraging folks to sign up for my newsletter. As an entrepreneur, I've learned that social media is not my website but rather a vehicle to drive traffic to my website. It's easy to rely on it so much that it's difficult to imagine how business can continue without it. I think if there's anything we can learn from TikTok going dark for a night is that social media is not guaranteed, that it's supplemental to the main thing and we need to own our stuff. If it all disappeared tomorrow what next?
This is probably going to sound lofty and idealistic but I believe in our creativity. I'm interested in what we can create outside of the meta-universe and offline. I want to see what happens when we support entrepreneurs and artists directly. That work has always been happening but let's make it exponentially more! It requires a little more intention but it's possible. In a way, many of the companies being talked about in conversations about boycotting are built from our desire for convenience. I don't know of anything I went looking for that I didn't find on Amazon. Walk into any Walmart and everything is there from groceries to sports equipment to you name it in one place. To show up for what's next, we need to be committed to doing the work of going to the source and that might mean going to three places instead of one. It might mean spending more on small businesses. It might look like finding other ways to connect with people. I'm excited about what that shift means for our collective spirit.
There's a small part of me that thinks about what it might mean for me to lose all my contacts on Facebook but a louder voice is telling me I'll be grateful to learn how to expand without the comfort of Instagram and Facebook. I also consider what it might mean to be a light on an app where people need hope. But I believe everything I've done on Facebook or any social media app (that I don't own or control), I can do somewhere else and the people who want to stay connected, who want to keep supporting me, who enjoy what I share, they will always find me and in this moment of great uncertainty, I am grounded in the work I do and who I am enough to know I can create, build and organize anywhere.
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Until next time,
D. Colin
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It’s interesting to hear about your perspective on social media amidst the snowstorm! Sometimes, it feels like a breath of fresh air to step back and disconnect, especially with all the noise. If you ever want to dive into content creation away from the noise, https://www.movavi.com/learning-portal/best-professional-video-editing-software.html could help you create some awesome videos in a simple and efficient way. Stay inspired and take care!