Dearest readers, about 24 hours ago Bloomberg has released an article titled "A 26-Year-Old Billionaire Built Fortune on Virtual YouTube Stars". In it, they are explaining the success of talented people providing the foundation for a virtual presence that can be built into a complete brand in the digital world, as well as companies that function as platforms to help them make it happen. Also, year over year the demand on YouTube for instructions on how to make successful faceless YouTube channels that can monetize has been steadily growing. TikTok as a platform generates millions of views of content on all possible topics it allows by users whose faces we will likely never see. This and more made me decide to write today on the topic of using your face online as a legitimization tool as something that is going away fast. Also, I would like to go over why I think it is going away (I am sure you can already guess the reasons haha), as well as why it is important for many of us to jump onto that trend as much as possible- or else...
For years now, I've had friends family members and acquaintances who have been using Instagram to showcase their hobby (wood working, photography, cooking...) or their lifestyle or things they are passionate about without talking about themselves personally or sharing their face. I did ask them why they never share a selfie or two, and their answer was not that they do not share selfies due to privacy (although hey they did so inadvertently) but because they believe it is better to share what they do or they are passionate about than who you are. They believe, as most of us do, that this will better connect them with people because the people who are into the same stuff or enjoy what you are into are likely to follow you and respond to you in a positive way. Also, it helped my female friends avoid romantic attention online and- believe it or not- there are still girls out there who do not enjoy random romantic attention on Instagram... Anyways, I always found that interesting and I think that the original goal of Instagram would have been to share things about you, not create a cult of ego and physical appearance.
On to privacy. We know that the Western societies tend to be more litigious- people are more likely to take each other to court. However, over the years our society has developed one more feature- it became hyper-accusatory. What do I mean by hyper-accusatory? I mean our society has seen a tremendous rise in accusations for all sorts of things- both likely and unlikely. I tried to google this term (lower case g as I am using it as a verb lol- in case anyone wants to know), and I did not come up with any widespread use of it. The first search result, however, was just pure gold!! It was a link to the Cleveland Clinic page for Paranoid Personality Disorder. Here are a few quotes I highly recommend you do not skip:
Now, dearest readers, I do not know if that entire page of Cleveland Clinic is a major, major troll or if it simply feels like one because those benefiting from the hyper-accusatory environment we are in want to do everything in our power no normalize on a societal level something currently defined as a personality disorder or rather a mental illness. I asked around about what people with this type of disorder typically need to do to function in everyday life while going through regular therapy (yep I have professional people I can ask things like this one). I was told that even though people with PPD do not suffer from hallucinations like people with Schizophrenia, there is a common exercise that helps both conditions cope on a day to day basis. You need to have a checklist that you go to every time the condition attacks your healthy view of reality. You ask yourself questions like "Is it real?", "Is anyone else reacting to it", "Is my reaction justifiable" and so on. I was also told that people with PPD can often be right about making accusations if someone is really doing something to them and that the fact this condition is defined in DSM as legit is not some conspiracy to turn all of us into obedient servants who never complain. Therefore, if you are chronically and sometimes tragically wrong about understanding the world around you and it is hurting you or the people around you, you really do have a problem that needs attention. This help, dearest readers, is what our society wants to cancel and legislate against.
How is this leading us to my original point about face no longer being necessary for online legitimization? Well, it is leading us there very directly for sure. I never victim shame or victim blame. However, I also always advocate for maximizing chances to survive and thrive everywhere and all the time. You will never find me impaired in a dark street with money sticking out of a designer purse. Today, the Internet has become that dark alley, and no matter how much you believe you are acting correct in accordance with laws, rights and freedoms, you are now a hyper-accusations target not in your immediate environment and the circles you exist in, but rather on a global stage. You put your face out there because you want to stand behind your content, you want to be a stand up human being, do things right etc. and that is admirable. However, in this hyper-accusatory environment, your face has to be the first thing to go if you want to survive. Your face may need to become almost as private as your social insurance number, your address, your credit card information and so other sensitive data about you.
Now, do you need to hide your face everywhere for everything? No, not necessarily. I do believe people will still show their faces online connected to the type of content they hope is still untouched by the hyper-accusatory feature of our society. There are still a few things in this world that just cannot easily attract hyper-accusations. For everything else, I see people using digital avatars more and more. I am sure some of you follow YouTube channels where the hosts are animated characters that represent the humans behind the content. Personally, I see this escalating. People will still use YouTube and so on, but we may see more and more creators post content through VPN purchased by crypto, with cool digital masks over their faces or visors or those cool LED glasses, the backdrops will be virtual or nondescript, there will be a voice modulator to change their voice, and they will use some kind of unique identifier to prove they are really that person instead of an impostor. If they get nuked, they reincarnate- they will not be banned. Once web hosting goes decentralized, the nuking will become impossible too. What will we do then? Will we finally prefer to talk again without accusations? Time will tell. All I can say is there will be huge, huge money in privacy, cybersecurity, decentralization and cancel-proofing over at least the next decade for better or worse- take your pick.
I recently received a recommendation to watch V for Vendetta- a movie I have never seen before but heard a lot about. Sure, it was partially a reason to research this topic haha (of course it was, no surprise there). However, more importantly, in light of our societal struggles today, it made me wonder if the Guy Fawkes costume will be popular again this Halloween and then every Halloween to come until we can put it away for a while.
For years now, I've had friends family members and acquaintances who have been using Instagram to showcase their hobby (wood working, photography, cooking...) or their lifestyle or things they are passionate about without talking about themselves personally or sharing their face. I did ask them why they never share a selfie or two, and their answer was not that they do not share selfies due to privacy (although hey they did so inadvertently) but because they believe it is better to share what they do or they are passionate about than who you are. They believe, as most of us do, that this will better connect them with people because the people who are into the same stuff or enjoy what you are into are likely to follow you and respond to you in a positive way. Also, it helped my female friends avoid romantic attention online and- believe it or not- there are still girls out there who do not enjoy random romantic attention on Instagram... Anyways, I always found that interesting and I think that the original goal of Instagram would have been to share things about you, not create a cult of ego and physical appearance.
On to privacy. We know that the Western societies tend to be more litigious- people are more likely to take each other to court. However, over the years our society has developed one more feature- it became hyper-accusatory. What do I mean by hyper-accusatory? I mean our society has seen a tremendous rise in accusations for all sorts of things- both likely and unlikely. I tried to google this term (lower case g as I am using it as a verb lol- in case anyone wants to know), and I did not come up with any widespread use of it. The first search result, however, was just pure gold!! It was a link to the Cleveland Clinic page for Paranoid Personality Disorder. Here are a few quotes I highly recommend you do not skip:
- Paranoid personality disorder (PPD) is a mental health condition marked by a pattern of distrust and suspicion of others without adequate reason to be suspicious. People with PPD are always on guard, believing that others are constantly trying to demean, harm or threaten them.
- Doubt the commitment, loyalty or trustworthiness of others, believing others are exploiting or deceiving them.
- Be reluctant to confide in others or reveal personal information because they’re afraid the information will be used against them.
- Be unforgiving and hold grudges.
- Be hypersensitive and take criticism poorly.
- Read hidden meanings in the innocent remarks or casual looks of others.
- Perceive attacks on their character that aren’t apparent to others.
- Have persistent suspicions, without justified reason, that their spouses or romantic partners are being unfaithful.
- Be cold and distant in their relationships with others and might become controlling and jealous to avoid being betrayed.
- Not see their role in problems or conflicts, believing they’re always right.
- Have difficulty relaxing.
- Be hostile, stubborn and argumentative.
Now, dearest readers, I do not know if that entire page of Cleveland Clinic is a major, major troll or if it simply feels like one because those benefiting from the hyper-accusatory environment we are in want to do everything in our power no normalize on a societal level something currently defined as a personality disorder or rather a mental illness. I asked around about what people with this type of disorder typically need to do to function in everyday life while going through regular therapy (yep I have professional people I can ask things like this one). I was told that even though people with PPD do not suffer from hallucinations like people with Schizophrenia, there is a common exercise that helps both conditions cope on a day to day basis. You need to have a checklist that you go to every time the condition attacks your healthy view of reality. You ask yourself questions like "Is it real?", "Is anyone else reacting to it", "Is my reaction justifiable" and so on. I was also told that people with PPD can often be right about making accusations if someone is really doing something to them and that the fact this condition is defined in DSM as legit is not some conspiracy to turn all of us into obedient servants who never complain. Therefore, if you are chronically and sometimes tragically wrong about understanding the world around you and it is hurting you or the people around you, you really do have a problem that needs attention. This help, dearest readers, is what our society wants to cancel and legislate against.
How is this leading us to my original point about face no longer being necessary for online legitimization? Well, it is leading us there very directly for sure. I never victim shame or victim blame. However, I also always advocate for maximizing chances to survive and thrive everywhere and all the time. You will never find me impaired in a dark street with money sticking out of a designer purse. Today, the Internet has become that dark alley, and no matter how much you believe you are acting correct in accordance with laws, rights and freedoms, you are now a hyper-accusations target not in your immediate environment and the circles you exist in, but rather on a global stage. You put your face out there because you want to stand behind your content, you want to be a stand up human being, do things right etc. and that is admirable. However, in this hyper-accusatory environment, your face has to be the first thing to go if you want to survive. Your face may need to become almost as private as your social insurance number, your address, your credit card information and so other sensitive data about you.
Now, do you need to hide your face everywhere for everything? No, not necessarily. I do believe people will still show their faces online connected to the type of content they hope is still untouched by the hyper-accusatory feature of our society. There are still a few things in this world that just cannot easily attract hyper-accusations. For everything else, I see people using digital avatars more and more. I am sure some of you follow YouTube channels where the hosts are animated characters that represent the humans behind the content. Personally, I see this escalating. People will still use YouTube and so on, but we may see more and more creators post content through VPN purchased by crypto, with cool digital masks over their faces or visors or those cool LED glasses, the backdrops will be virtual or nondescript, there will be a voice modulator to change their voice, and they will use some kind of unique identifier to prove they are really that person instead of an impostor. If they get nuked, they reincarnate- they will not be banned. Once web hosting goes decentralized, the nuking will become impossible too. What will we do then? Will we finally prefer to talk again without accusations? Time will tell. All I can say is there will be huge, huge money in privacy, cybersecurity, decentralization and cancel-proofing over at least the next decade for better or worse- take your pick.
I recently received a recommendation to watch V for Vendetta- a movie I have never seen before but heard a lot about. Sure, it was partially a reason to research this topic haha (of course it was, no surprise there). However, more importantly, in light of our societal struggles today, it made me wonder if the Guy Fawkes costume will be popular again this Halloween and then every Halloween to come until we can put it away for a while.