the internet is in her 'cult leader' era
.....and i'm not having a good time.
I’ve been very vocal over the last few years about how much I dislike this current iteration of the internet. The internet used to be a place for discovery and connection. And now….I sincerely believe it is an echo chamber for wanna-be cult leaders and their disciples. Don’t get me wrong, there are a lot of people online who are still sharing genuine art and ‘content’ and I enjoy them but we’ve shifted into a new timeline. I once tweeted (RIP to that platform) that the coolest people on the internet in the future will probably have smaller followings, in the 10K mark to be exact. Years later, I think I’m right.
Think about it….this iteration of the internet belongs to people who would have been cult leaders and used car salesmen in another life. The content that thrives on the internet today revolves around instruction, specifically instruction for people who have no desire for individual pursuits. Look at what’s happened to makeup, one of the first niche online corners to be fully adopted by the mainstream. Go back to the videos from even 10 years ago and people were creating their own makeup looks based on the things that they liked. Today’s videos are largely ‘how-to’s’ with no advanced goal. Videos like ‘drugstore baddie makeup tutorial’, ‘it girl makeup trends’, ‘makeup trends to avoid’ are the types of content that dominate the algorithm. It’s deeply concerning because it indicates that the primary interest is how to be in line with society’s expectations of how to wear your makeup, instead of wearing the makeup that makes you feel the most alive. Or conversely, the average makeup influencer today does a sponsored post for so many different kinds of products that your eyes glaze over every time they tell you to ‘run, don’t walk’ for yet another serum at Sephora.
Obviously, this applies to other creative outlets too. The most successful fashion content involves a myriad of ‘how-to’s’, showing women ‘how to style the latest seasonal trends’, ‘how to build capsule wardrobes’, ‘the 10 must-haves for your wardrobe’, and so on. These videos are plentiful online and they’re pretty evergreen, so I understand why people create them. And yes, I understand that the world is full of people who want help with creating their wardrobes and they are style-challenged. But it doesn’t take long to notice that content is disproportionally catering to those of us who want to be told what to do. I can assure you as someone who actively looks, it is refreshing and ultimately RARE when I find a fashion creator online who primarily makes content showcasing the stuff she actually likes and not just the stuff that is sponsored/has higher engagement because of the brand recognition/is part of yet another ‘how-to’ video for the fashion sheep of today.
Why does everyone in this iteration of the internet yearn to be told what to do? I’ve been asking myself this question all month. I think it is an unintended side-effect of being online. There is a learned helplessness in so many people and rather than try to figure out what they like, people flock to whatever salesperson influencer promises to hold the key to their eternal happiness. Spoiler alert: somehow the answer to all of life’s ills is in invidious consumption. It’s to the point where the newest crop of influencers feel very creepy to me. They make content for an audience that is both insecure and lazy. Their audience is willing to outsource the discovery of their own lives under the promise that these tips will allow them to bypass time and practice. When I have deep dives about fashion on my TikTok, I can always count on someone asking me to just give them the answer to what is acceptable to wear. I want to (lovingly) shake them and say ‘Life doesn’t work like that! Anyone who says otherwise wants to sell you something!’
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-xoxo Jenn