Good take on it... I mean, when using Twitter and YouTube, there was something obviously "out of sight" for me or that feeling that we're being trolled. Of course we immediately think "oh is the algorithm" as most people nowadays keep repeating, as if they know what happens.
Twitter now is a bit (a tiny bit) better, but YT is pure shit, you cannot even comment there, every possible word is censored and shadow banned.
However, I didn't get exactly the practical aspects of what you mean with "overvalued", mainly because, for people liking something, it cannot be faked unless you buy likes, what we know that is possible but not so viable, economically. It's also obvious that YT specially promotes content that works for their interests.
Rotten bananas is a nice explanation, though, at least for me. I would just add that, maybe the content that become viral is not overvalued for YT: they choose and promote content that is valuable for them. And for most people, that content is just average, but as they don't have the critical view to dismiss shitty stuff, they just consume it, and give likes and shares.
I frequently make some experiments, using YouTube anonymously. I reset the connection, got another IP, a what the platform recommends is ALWAYS the same. Lots of bullshit, childish stuff, porn disguised of something else, terrible music, woke agenda, extreme leftist political views, and many, many other disgusting garbage.
If that is truly viral, we can lose all hope in humanity. But it's not, YT recommends always the same thing, regardless of the audience. Things only start to change if you're logged in and start interacting with some videos. Still, YT keeps trying to fool and trap you with some other content.
Maybe I miss the point here, but if we bring the same idea of selling rotten bananas, we'll also dismiss the opportunity of creating something more positive. It's possible to promote things that are interesting for people, while not turning SN a suicide machine. Yes it's soo frustrating to see idiotic posts on Twitter being so hyped, but life is a thing.
what the platform recommends is ALWAYS the same ... Lots of bullshit
Exactly. To be specific, platforms like youtube want to know if you're a creator or a lurker; if you're never going to make anything anyway its fine to show you less overvalued stuff.
What would you show a new user, who potentially is a high quality bass player? Would you show the best bass player ever? Or would you show them a mediocre bass player with 10 million followers?
On twitter everyone (pretty much) is a potential creator, it's not hard to tweet. They can troll more than youtube.
I'm not sure it's the end of hope for humanity though, like all strategies it's just something to be aware of. You can beat a troll simply by not feeding it. You can get food by being a troll.
A particularly insidious example is OnlyFans. Many people (myself included, for a long time) carry the idea around that if you're a hot girl, you can easily get rich on onlyfans. That's what they want you believe. But try it, sell your fresh bananas, and it's not so easy. And then, well. "Whats wrong with me?". Nothing, your bananas are just fine. It's just a troll.
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