Pisaries Creator

The Antisocial Network: Memes to Mayhem is a documentary by Arthur Jones and Giorgio Angelini about social media and how it can explode into having a life of its own. People sometimes refer to this as an unexpected consequence. Had I heard about 4chan before watching this film? Yes. Was I really invested into learning and reading more about it when it first surfaced? No. The same goes for people who willingly go into chat rooms or message boards to pick fights with people for the sake of it. The same goes for most hackers although I do think there are a few hackers that force people to open their eyes and brains a little more for the good of society.

What started as innocent Rickrolling (think Rick Astley) basically led to posting anything and everything because people tend to feel all powerful when they are incognito. This gave people the security they needed to feel they were protected and could say, think, and feel anything they wanted. How easily situations can become unruly and dangerous when it seems no one can be held accountable for their actions.

The one thing this documentary focuses on and which most everyone knows about social media platforms is companies make money on disagreements and debate and really make their money when it turns into hate and knee jerk reactions. One more clicking of the mouse, one more nasty comment written, one more meme with the middle finger high in the air because you disagree with someone else. Remember when your parents told you to calm down when your sibling was irritating you to no end? This doesn’t seem be used by many people these days.

Social media has positives by connecting people in certain ways, but it can also drive the wedge deeper among groups. Most of us can agree that the black market selling of organs online is a downfall of the Internet, but there’s less consensus of how damaging surfing the Internet causes someone let alone how powerful any organization holds that grows from social media. I don’t put too much importance on QAnon because from my standpoint I view them as people who pick up fries from the dirty McDonald’s floor and eat them. Maybe, I should’ve been paying more attention because this group did succeed in growing their numbers enough to gain access into the U.S. Capitol. More people need to ask themselves why do I hate the other side so much? The bottom line is to check yourself even your most established views and principles.

While Republicans and Democrats fit practically the same mold except the donkey brays and the elephant trumpets, they both kick and don’t stray far from their confines. We need to get out of our comfort zone (easier said than done) but so do politicians that are entrenched in their own personal filth. Turning a blind eye and being numb to what’s happening around us is not a good solution either.

Yes, technological advancements have made it easier to manipulate and misinform others and get emotional responses to posts like fear and anger. Sure, social media can promote positive change, but it can also do the reverse where movements are taken to an extreme. Intention matters quite a bit as it relates to social protocol. I truly believe social media has become as addictive as any legal or illegal drug. Many of us can’t live a day without it and because of this some of us fall prey to scams, believe fake news, don’t verify information, and more. We need to expand our knowledge, challenge our beliefs, promote new interactions, and reflect on our own biases. This is all I have to say about this. 

I rate The Antisocial Network FOUR FINGERS at 90%