I just find them soulless, and manipulative.
They're all filled with attention seeking posts. Click-baits are everywhere, no one is actually genuinely posting stuff because they're interested in that, they just want the attention of people.
And that's the same for the people running these companies. They only want the attention of people so that they can sell ads to them.
This has become the norm in the web 2.0 these days. Ads everywhere. They might look flashier now, but they remind me of the cheap look of the early websites, filled with ads. I still prefer a good ol' Geocities website though, with their guest book, under construction sign, and a few fire gifs.
I still remember the early days of these platforms, when people started using them because they genuinely wanted to share something, not because they were looking for likes. It was a promising time, moving away from the Geocities era, into a more sophisticated way of making websites.
In 2006, Zuckerberg told NBC’s “The Today Show” that he started Facebook because he “just figured it would be really cool if there was some website that I could go to that would tell me a bunch of information about my friends and the people around me.”
But after a few years it's now back to websites being filled with ads. And worst now because it's all tracked. Every click is tracked. That link you clicked on your gmail?, absolutely tracked, it goes to google first, then it gets redirected to your url. That new message you received on LinkedIn?, actually an ad based on your profile and activity. And with the smartphones they're even listening to what you say, and send you suggestions based on that. Talked about getting a new BBQ with a mate?, start receiving ads about BBQs. It's just creepy.
Having sites like Stacker News is really a breath of fresh air.
And another great thing I've recently discover is GrapheneOS. Basically you can run Android on your phone, without having to use anything Google. No need for a Google account, or the Play Store. No trackers anywhere in your phone, no ads. It's beautiful. So peaceful to just have exactly what you want to see, and nothing else.
Your attention is important, and I would recommend you block any external nudges like ads that try to focus your attention to things that don't really matter to you. Once you're free of ads, you're free to choose on what you'll focus your attention.
I really hope we start to see more sites like SN. Have you found one?, I would love to hear about it.