(Photo credit: Camilo Jimenez, Unsplash)
Signal Strength: This post is part of a series exploring public relations and communications beyond messaging, as a discipline centered around understanding and applying principles and stimuli that shape public opinion to influence individual and group action.
Summary
- People are leaving social media because of the proliferation of fake accounts, constant exposure to negative news, and divisive political conversations that leave them feeling exhausted.
- There is a growing realization that social media is eroding our attention spans, affecting our mental health, and may be lowering our IQ.
- To address these concerns, social media companies should eliminate fake accounts by using a profile verification system—which will also ensure more civil discourse on their platforms by removing anonymity—and show you content from sources that you follow as the default rather than “For You”-type recommendations.
As someone who spends a fair amount of time online and aware of the discourse and digital trends that surface in the digital ecosystem, I believe two realities of our day will lead to an off-ramping of people from their social networks. Individuals will spend fewer hours online or abandon their accounts altogether.
First is the seemingly never-ending cascade of negative news related to the second Trump administration. I have already witnessed a number of friends say “goodbye” and share their final messages on their feeds—citing a torrent of unwanted Donald Trump updates as their motivation—and inviting people to email their contacts to remain connected.
Secondly is a broader realization that the endless hours online—and the often negative, divisive interactions people have while there—are robbing us of our attention spans and eroding our mental health. This realization, and the anxiety around it, are growing. A recent study led by the University of Cambridge reveals that teens with mental health challenges spent more time online, and the video below, by data journalist John Burn-Murdoch of the Financial Times, posits an even more ominous outcome: Social media and smartphones may be lowering our intelligence.
If an exodus from social media were to grow, it would be an existential threat to the companies that connect us digitally. To survive, they should take strategic steps to address this potential outcome before it snowballs into a full-blown crisis.
What are the problems with social media?
Companies need to address the increasing number of fake profiles on their platforms. With the wider adoption of generative AI, many networks have seen a rise in bots and fake accounts that convincingly act and communicate as humans do. But there is an increasing awareness of these accounts (and how to spot them), and they are driving users to abandon their social media feeds for more meaningful forms of engagement.
Social media’s DNA was about connecting real people, and fake accounts transgress this in the most blatant way. They sow discord, scam users, spread misinformation, and harvest data often for dubious ends. Unfortunately, there isn’t an incentive to purge these accounts because they inflate engagement numbers that drive value for companies. But there’s no point in remaining on a platform that is increasingly polluted by bots and fraudsters, and companies must realize this to safeguard their long-term survival. Building a house on hollow foundation will ultimately end in collapse; and as an advertiser, I would prefer reaching a smaller audience of real people than a larger audience of fake ones.
Algorithms must also better curate content to offer suggestions that leave users feeling inspired, empowered, and positive. Right now, default “For You” settings based on imprecise algorithms seem to be doing the opposite, and an increasing number of young adults are experiencing mental health issues because of it. This LinkedIn video by social media manager Carmen Vicente articulates the problem well. She writes of “algorithm hangovers” in which “people are becoming more aware of the negative side effects that accompany the endless scroll and are demanding better guardrails, stronger legislation, and personal boundaries.”
Discourse if often heated and negative. People respond to posts to win debates rather than learn. Relying on time on page and engagement metrics in this environment isn’t always an accurate measure of preference. People often watch or interact with content for a variety of reasons, but enjoyment and genuine interest are not always two of them. Ultimately, ensuring users log off feeling inspired and uplifted is critical to keep them coming back.
How can we improve social media?
If “For You” feeds are to be the default, one solution to the algorithm could be a Tinder-like left/right swipe function for content that tells the platform what you’re interested in seeing—and what you’re not. This simple reflex popularized by a dating app takes very little intellectual investment and comes naturally to many people. Currently, “liking” a post seems to be the easiest way to signal one’s interest; but there are reasons why someone may be reluctant to like a post even though they enjoy the content and want to see more of it. An easier solution would be to make the feed show follower content by default rather than recommendations, and make the latter available only when explicitly chosen.
To address both problems outlined above, a verification system that confirms a user—and their representation online (i.e., profile photo)—is real could be an effective way to filter out fake accounts (problem 1) and ensure conversations online remain civil and, in most cases, positive because it adds an element of accountability that fosters civility (solution to problem 2). On the latter, consider for example how much more positive posts on LinkedIn are compared to X/Twitter. Anonymity brings out the worst in human nature; transparency does the opposite. This one change could reshape the social media experience for millions of people and clean up the often dark alleys of the internet.