Social Media Minefield

Many years ago when the world was maybe a more naive place, some of us thought that social media was going to be a liberating , creative experience.

I was on Twitter pretty early on and it was a fun place to be. No fascist owners or far right trolls in sight. Just mainly nice people communicating and sharing their work, experiences, terrible jokes.

Back in the day, Facebook was purely an extension of Friends Reunited; the place to reconnect with school friends and relatives. Instagram didn’t exist but even when that came along, it was generally fun.

Two things happened. Firstly, the possibility to monetise these platforms occurred. Creators of platforms became very wealthy by selling advertising spots. They designed algorithms to be embedded into the platforms in order to entice users to buy stuff they otherwise wouldn’t. These algorithms were then used by more nefarious people to politicise them in order to influence users how to vote, often against their own interests.

Those of us who made posts were suddenly being commented upon by people who disliked something we said or posted. The legions of armchair experts and critics rose to offer their opinions whether you wanted them or not.

Then the big one was Elon Musk buying Twitter.

He instantly weaponised it, inviting hate speakers back into the fold under the umbrella of ‘free speech’. He changed Twitter to X, a subliminal nod to a far right propaganda outlet. We all know what’s happened since then as he sits on the throne of power with Orange Don as his puppet president. Mark Zuckerberg, always a doubtful human being, drank the cool aid and has now gone over to the dark side. His empire Meta, controls not only Facebook but Instagram and Threads. He no doubts mines the accounts of users to influence their thinking and drain their bank accounts .

There aren’t many massive global corporations these days who don’t have questionable motives. Jeff Bezos controls the world of online shopping through Amazon; Adobe try to control the world of creators through exorbitant prices for their software. Google is omnipresent along with their arch rivals Apple. Who can we trust to act with integrity and impartiality without sucking up to right wing dictators such as Trump? Who are the good guys?

I am now uncertain as to whether the owners of this website creator, Squarespace, are doing it with a degree of social altruism. No aspect of modern living is exempt from money corrupting the purposes of that which they claim to have. There are many small independent businesses and platforms trying to do the decent thing and have some principles. They rarely succeed because the giants know how to make us totally reliant on them. Where would content creators be without YouTube or small businesses selling crafts, without Etsy and Pinterest. Is there anything untainted by greed in existence.

I buy stuff off Amazon because it’s quick, cheap and convenient. I use Instagram to promote my photography. I have an Apple phone/IPad and Mac. I shoot with Nikon cameras, I am no beacon in the darkness of global domination. Maybe, we are all waiting for these global organisations to grow consciences or maybe we just done t care? As long as we get our deliveries the next day and post freely on Instagram/Threads/X, we are happy.

There will be those who opt out for ethical reasons or because the platform doesn’t meet their business needs. And all the while, Musk and Bezos will continue to build rockets to go into space because that’s somewhere they’ve yet to conquer. There are major players who attempt to do some semblance of good. Rich people have always sought ways to make themselves richer by exploiting those who are less well off. Greed has always driven the wealthy to keep wealthy. So what has this got to do with photography?

I could rely purely on my website for publicity, business or engagement. I could take photos, print them and sell them to customers at art fairs or through shops. The truth is for most creators these days is that we need social media to help promote our work. To get work, you have to have a social media presence. You have to be the dancing monkey to the Hurdy Gurdy man called Instagram. You need a website to sell, showcase and book clients. You have to play the game because everyone else is. Self righteousness and moral principles leave you in the dark in this modern era. You have to develop a thick skin for dealing with criticism, to be determined when unsolicited advice is offered on what you are doing wrong with your photography.

Being a photographer is an ever developing art. You can always try new ways to make and take photos. I learn from others, I critique others work but I try to always respect their creative choices. I want to take better photos because I love what I do. I love talking to other similarly minded photographers about their work. We lead often very isolated lives. We often work best on our own.

I am sure I’m not the only one who has imposter syndrome but I just have to keep going because I love what I do. Put a camera in my hand and I feel like I come alive. I would be empty without it. Yes, I have wonderful partner and family, I live in a Beautiful part of England but I need a creative identity. I hope the global oligarchs who control our social media, our creative tools both hardware and software come to see that money and power aren’t everything. I hope they remember why they started up and return to decent creative practices.