Has Social Media Ever Been More Important Than It is Right Now? [Content Made Simple]
Also, reactions to the Black Lives Matter movement is tearing apart Facebook groups from the inside out.
TOP OF THE WEEK
THE TIKTOK HOUSE WREAKING HAVOC NEXT DOOR
YET AGAIN, INFLUENCERS MAKE FOR BAD NEIGHBORS…BUT IT’S ALL FOR THE CONTENT
Quote:
“I feel bad when I’m like, ‘You don’t belong here,’” Ms. Acevedo said, acknowledging that she too is a “guest” in the neighborhood. “But I wish they cared more about anything other than getting famous on the internet.”
Commentary:
The Sway House is hardly the first house full of influencers that has proven that no amount of fence can, in fact, make good neighbors. Jake Paul and his Team 10 house, if they have any legacy at all, will leave the legacy of being the progenitors of the influencers-as-bad-neighbors-because-of-content phenomenon. Reading this story about TikTokersbeing bad neighbors was sad, but not really surprising. When you give a bunch of teenagers a ton of money and an LA mansion, well, what do you expect? Fascinating view into social media culture right now. TikTok isn’t just silly videos of teenagers doing trendy dances. It’s a major force in social movements as well.
ON THE POD
Social Qs #008: Has Social Media Ever Been More Important Than It Is Right Now?
This week on the podcast, we talk about whether or not social media has ever been more important for Americans than it has been these past few weeks and months. Between the coronavirus pandemic and the latest iteration of the Black Lives Matter protests, social media has seemed more essential than ever.
HITTING THE LINKS
Link #1: Facebook Groups Are Falling Apart Over Black Lives Matter Posts
This is an interesting phenomenon. Many Americans are split over the legitimacy of the Black Lives Matter Movement (though seemingly fewer oppose it today than have opposed it in the past). I saw one reporter tweeting about conflict within a Facebook group for wealthy moms in an area of Manhattan over BLM content.
Boss-Moms is one of many Facebook groups grappling with inadequate moderation policies as members attempt to discuss Black Lives Matter. The groups, which range in focus from video games to music to local communities, are moderated by other group members. The moderators have no formal training from Facebook or outside sources and make their own decisions about what content is and is not allowed. Most groups have no reference point for how to give everyone a voice, and that’s led to fighting between members, people leaving, groups temporarily shutting down, and splinter groups breaking off.
Link #2: The Most Important Social Media Advice I Give People
A right answer to a wrong question is actually a wrong answer. If social media managers are going to create content their audiences actually want to read, we have to ask the right question.
One of the most chronic problems I run into in world of social media and content strategy is this: self-centeredness. Let me explain what I mean.
Most brands/companies/organizations/churches go into a social media strategy with either an implicit or explicit posture that says:
“What can I post today to help people want to be more engaged with us?”
That’s the wrong question.
Link #3: QAnon Is More Important Than You Think
This is a long article, but it is one of the best reads I’ve had in a long time. If you watch the news or monitor social media chatter at all, you have likely heard of QAnon. What is it? It’s more important and influential than you can imagine.
One phrase that serves as a special touchstone among QAnon adherents is “the calm before the storm.” Q first used it a few days after his initial post, and it arrived with a specific history. On the evening of October 5, 2017—not long before Q first made himself known on 4chan—President Trump stood beside the first lady in a loose semicircle with 20 or so senior military leaders and their spouses for a photo in the State Dining Room at the White House. Reporters had been invited to watch as Trump’s guests posed and smiled. Trump couldn’t seem to stop talking. “You guys know what this represents?” he asked at one point, tracing an incomplete circle in the air with his right index finger. “Tell us, sir,” one onlooker replied. The president’s response was self-satisfied, bordering on a drawl: “Maybe it’s the calm before the storm.”
“What’s the storm?” one of the journalists asked.
“Could be the calm—the calm before the storm,” Trump said again. His repetition seemed to be for dramatic effect. The whir of camera shutters grew louder.
The reporters became insistent: “What storm, Mr. President?”
A curt response from Trump: “You’ll find out.”
THE FUNNY PART
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