I asked Chat GPT what would a society without social media look like

[Apprentice]

Was discussing this with my mans who worked for Google and Twitter, he said he thinks it would be better

I asked chat gpt to describe the pros and cons of a society without it, this what it said

Spoiler

A society without social media would operate with traditional forms of communication and information sharing, relying on face-to-face interactions, telephone calls, letters, newspapers, television, and radio. In such a society, people would primarily interact with those in their immediate community or through established social networks, such as family, friends, colleagues, and local organizations.

Pros of a Society Without Social Media:​

1. Enhanced Privacy:
   • People would have greater control over their personal information, as there would be fewer platforms collecting data. This could lead to fewer instances of identity theft, data breaches, and online harassment.
2. Stronger Personal Relationships:
   • Face-to-face interactions would likely increase, fostering deeper, more meaningful relationships. People might focus more on their immediate surroundings and communities, leading to stronger bonds.
3. Reduced Misinformation:
   • Without the rapid spread of information on social media, misinformation and fake news might not proliferate as quickly. Traditional media outlets, with their editorial standards, would dominate information dissemination.
4. Less Social Pressure:
   • The absence of social media could reduce the pressure to present an idealized version of oneself. This might lead to lower levels of anxiety, depression, and FOMO (Fear of Missing Out), as people wouldn't constantly compare themselves to others online.
5. More Productivity:
   • Without the distractions of social media, people might be more focused and productive in their personal and professional lives.
6. Increased Creativity and Innovation:
   • Without easy access to a constant stream of content, individuals might be more inclined to create their own entertainment, art, and culture, potentially leading to greater originality and innovation.

Cons of a Society Without Social Media:​

1. Limited Access to Information:
   • People might have less access to diverse perspectives and real-time information. Traditional media might not cover niche topics or global events as extensively as social media does.
2. Reduced Global Connectivity:
   • Social media connects people across the world, allowing for the exchange of ideas, cultures, and movements. Without it, global awareness and cross-cultural communication might be diminished.
3. Challenges in Organizing Social Movements:
   • Social media has been instrumental in organizing and mobilizing social and political movements. In its absence, grassroots movements might struggle to gain traction and reach a wider audience.
4. Limited Opportunities for Small Businesses and Creators:
   • Many small businesses, artists, and content creators rely on social media for marketing and reaching their audience. Without these platforms, they might find it more challenging to grow their customer base or gain recognition.
5. Less Immediate Feedback and Connection:
   • Social media provides a platform for immediate feedback, whether it's for businesses, public figures, or individuals. In its absence, getting feedback would be slower and might require more traditional methods, such as surveys or focus groups.
6. Diminished Public Discourse:
   • Social media often serves as a platform for public discourse, allowing for debates and discussions on various topics. Without it, public debate might be more limited to formal settings, potentially excluding voices that would otherwise participate online.

Conclusion:​

A society without social media would likely be more focused on local, personal interactions and traditional forms of communication. While it might lead to stronger personal relationships, greater privacy, and reduced social pressure, it could also limit access to information, reduce global connectivity, and hinder the growth of small businesses and social movements. The overall impact would depend on how society adapts to the absence of these platforms.

Thought it was interesting someone who worked for information companies said this, what y’all think tho?

The second con isn’t really a con imo, I don’t think I need to be connected to the rest of the world

 

[Biblical Goon]

Anybody who grew up pre social media could tell you this imo but I think the other part of this equation is smart phones. Social media without smart phones was peak. No doom scrolling, no influencers, no algorithms just computer lab fun or home computer fun that had its place.

 

[bnew]

a society without social media is a society dominated by traditional media conglomerates and outlets that have historically ignored the issues black communities have brought up for decades. they'd ignore police brutality like they have for decades and the fact that they plant drugs on people, can't file a police report against an officer without being harassed, etc. social media has given a voice to the voiceless. without social media George Floyd wouldn't have gotten any justice like the thousands of other black men who have been unjustifiably killed by the police.

the second con really is a con because ignorance isn't bliss, see the week long active thread on there about the U.K riots and minorities being attacked. social media is fukking up israel's narrative about palestine.

 

[Splakavellie504]

shyt OP most of the coli is and grew up in a time without social media. You didnt have to ask chat gpt lol. Hell a few members grew up before the internet lol.

 

[cheek100]

Technology always wins next is ai. U think sm changed the game
pre sm was wilder and less informed it is what it is

 

[Apprentice]

a society without social media is a society dominated by traditional media conglomerates and outlets that have historically ignored the issues black communities have brought up for decades. they'd ignore police brutality like they have for decades and the fact that they plant drugs on people, can't file a police report against an officer without being harassed, etc. social media has given a voice to the voiceless. without social media George Floyd wouldn't have gotten any justice like the thousands of otehr black men who have been unjustifiably killed by the police.

the second con really is a con because ignorance isn't bliss, see the week long active thread on there about the U.K riots and minorities being attacked. social media is fukking up israel's narrative about palestine.

I feel u bra in domestic cases like u mentioned in the first paragraph, we seen it first hand in 2020

But the second one I can’t agree, international issues largely don’t affect my day to day life, the Gaza conflict is sad fasho but even with the knowledge, a person me can’t do anything about it; I think ignorance is very bliss sometimes

 

[TEH]

Interesting

 

[ROBEEZYKILLA]

I grew up pre internet my theory is that social media is great for adults terrible for children and the next generations and it's very clear nowadays how it has fukked up gen Z and the following generation

 

[Diyhai]

a society without social media is a society dominated by traditional media conglomerates and outlets that have historically ignored the issues black communities have brought up for decades. they'd ignore police brutality like they have for decades and the fact that they plant drugs on people, can't file a police report against an officer without being harassed, etc. social media has given a voice to the voiceless. without social media George Floyd wouldn't have gotten any justice like the thousands of otehr black men who have been unjustifiably killed by the police.

the second con really is a con because ignorance isn't bliss, see the week long active thread on there about the U.K riots and minorities being attacked. social media is fukking up israel's narrative about palestine.

read a history book
I guess Rodney King didn't exist and countless other police brutality incidents
Shyt aint new
social media has made it even worst people thinking retweeting is proactive and helping society

 

[bnew]

read a history book
I guess Rodney King didn't exist and countless other police brutality incidents
Shyt aint new
social media has made it even worst people thinking retweeting is proactive and helping society

but we knew there were rodney kings everyday, their encounters just weren't being video recorded and shown on live tv.

laws have been enacted and police procedure has changed because of social media.

New Louisiana Law Serves as a Warning to Bystanders Who Film Police: Stay Away or Face Arrest

Louisiana is the fourth state to enact a so-called police buffer law, which allows officers to order people to keep their distance. Journalists say the law will make it harder to document when police use excessive force.

www.propublica.org

​

New Louisiana Law Serves as a Warning to Bystanders Who Film Police: Stay Away or Face Arrest​

​

Louisiana is the fourth state to enact a so-called police buffer law, which allows officers to order people to keep their distance. Journalists say the law will make it harder to document when police use excessive force.​

A police officer uses a chokehold while detaining a Black man during a protest in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, in 2016. Karen Savage, an independent journalist who photographed the demonstrations, said a new “police buffer law” makes her hesitant to report on such events. “I was thinking about how far exactly 25 feet is, and, at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter. It’s going to be whatever the officer wants it to be,” Savage said. Credit: Courtesy of Karen Savage

by Richard A. Webster, Verite News July 31, 4 p.m. EDT

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Co-published with Verite News

This article was produced for ProPublica’s Local Reporting Network in partnership with Verite News. Sign up for Dispatches to get stories like this one as soon as they are published.

Four years before a Minneapolis police officer murdered George Floyd, prompting nationwide demonstrations, hundreds of people marched in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to protest officers’ killing of Alton Sterling in front of a convenience store. Law enforcement responded in force: Officers armed with rifles, body armor and gas masks pushed protesters back and forcibly arrested about 200 people. Some were injured.

A group of 13 protesters and two journalists filed suit, alleging their constitutional rights were violated when they were arrested. Eventually, the city agreed to pay them $1.17 million. Photographs and videos taken by protesters, witnesses and journalists were critical in contradicting officers’ claims that protesters were the aggressors, said William Most, an attorney for the plaintiffs.

On Thursday, a Louisiana law will go into effect that will make it a misdemeanor for anyone, including journalists, to be within 25 feet of a law enforcement officer if the officer orders them back. The two independent journalists who sued, whose photos were used to support allegations against the police, said they wouldn’t have been able to capture those images if the law had been on the books during the protests.

Karen Savage was working for a news site focused on juvenile justice issues on the second day of the demonstrations in July 2016 when she photographed officers putting a Black man in a chokehold as they detained him. Cherri Foytlin, who was working for a small newspaper and a community media project, said she was within 4 feet when she photographed officers violently dragging a Black man off private property and arresting him.

Foytlin and Savage said they are hesitant to cover protests in Louisiana now that they could face criminal charges if they’re too close to an officer. “I was thinking about how far exactly 25 feet is, and, at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter. It’s going to be whatever the officer wants it to be,” Savage said. “And if it doesn’t get to court, it won’t matter because they will have accomplished what they wanted, which was to get the cameras away.”

On Wednesday, a coalition of media companies representing a couple dozen Louisiana news outlets, including Verite News, filed suit against Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill, State Police Superintendent Robert Hodges and East Baton Rouge District Attorney Hillar Moore III, alleging the law violates the First Amendment.

In a statement provided Thursday, Murrill said the law ensures law enforcement officers can do their jobs without being threatened or impeded by others. She said she looks forward to “defending this reasonable response to documented interference with law enforcement.” State Police spokesperson Capt. Nick Manale declined to comment on the suit; a representative for Moore did not respond to a request for comment.

Police buffer laws, as they are commonly known, are relatively new; Louisiana is the fourth state to enact one. Although those states already prohibit interfering with police officers, supporters say buffer laws are necessary to protect police from distrustful, aggressive bystanders. And with advances in cellphone cameras, including zoom lenses, supporters say there’s no need to get close to officers in order to record their activities.

“There’s really nothing within a 25-feet span that someone couldn’t pick up on video,” Rep. Bryan Fontenot, R-Thibodaux, the sponsor of Louisiana’s bill and a former law enforcement officer, said during a legislative hearing this year. At the same time, he said, “that person can’t spit in my face when I’m making an arrest.” (He did not respond to a request for comment.)

Foytlin disagreed. “You can’t even get an officer’s badge number at 25 feet. So there’s no way to hold anyone accountable.”

She and Savage said police targeted them during the Baton Rouge protests because they were taking photos of protesters being slammed to the ground, dragged across the pavement, choked and zip-tied by law enforcement officers. Both journalists were charged with obstructing public rights of way and resisting arrest. Prosecutors did not pursue those charges.

The journalists and protesters sued the city of Baton Rouge, the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office and the Louisiana State Police, claiming law enforcement officers had used excessive force when arresting them. The Sheriff’s Office was dismissed as a defendant because a judge concluded its deputies weren’t involved with those arrests. The State Police settled for an undisclosed amount in 2021. The suit against Baton Rouge went to trial in 2023; the city agreed to the million-dollar settlement the day before closing arguments.

Neither the Sheriff’s Office nor the Baton Rouge Police Department responded to requests for comment. The Louisiana State Police declined to comment on the lawsuit or protests.

Foytlin said she didn’t think the settlement would cause law enforcement agencies to change their tactics; now, she believes they’ll be emboldened by the buffer law to crack down more harshly on anyone trying to document officers’ actions.

“From what I saw in Baton Rouge, and what they were able to get away with, I have no doubt that in the future, the consequences of trying to use your free speech or to protest are going to be much harsher,” she said.

“You Can’t Tase a Child.” “Watch me.”​

Given the inconsistent use of police body-worn cameras, said Nora Ahmed, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Louisiana, often the only way people can guard against false charges and prove that officers used excessive force is to film them in close proximity. “In the absence of video or audio evidence,” she said, “it’s very difficult to convince anyone that the story occurred in any way different other than what the police report.”

Such video was critical in a lawsuit Ahmed handled in which a woman sued two sheriff’s deputies over her arrest in St. Tammany Parish, across Lake Pontchartrain from New Orleans.

https://assets-d.propublica.org/v5/video/teliah-perkins-angle1-CLIP3.mp4

As De’Shaun Johnson filmed deputies who were arresting his mother in St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, in 2020, Deputy Ryan Moring told him to “get back” several times and pointed a Taser at him. Johnson, then 14 years old, refused. A new state law allows officers to arrest people if they remain within 25 feet after an officer orders them back. Credit: Courtesy of Teliah Perkins

The May 2020 incident started with an anonymous complaint about someone riding a motorcycle without a helmet in a Slidell neighborhood, according to the lawsuit. Deputies Ryan Moring and Kyle Hart showed up at Teliah Perkins’ home, writing in an incident report that they saw Perkins ride a motorcycle without a helmet. In Perkins’ lawsuit, she denied doing so.

The conversation quickly became heated. Perkins accused the deputies of harassing her because she is Black; the deputies wrote in the incident report that she was “irate” and verbally attacked them.

Perkins called for her son De’Shaun Johnson, then 14, and her nephew, then 15, to come outside and record what was happening, according to the deputies’ incident report and the videos. When they did, at least one of the deputies ordered them to go back on the porch, which was more than 25 feet away.

The boys ignored the deputies and continued to film from about 6 feet away. As Hart forced Perkins to the ground, Moring approached Johnson, shoving him and telling him to move back, according to Perkins’ lawsuit and her son’s video. When Perkins screamed that she was being choked, Moring stood in front of Johnson to block his view, he later admitted in his deposition. Moring then pointed his Taser at the boy.

“You can’t tase a child,” Johnson said, according to the lawsuit and the son’s video.

“Watch me,” Moring responded.

 

[Richard Glidewell]

This thread gonna attract low to no brain power....... the world has existed for millenia with no social media and has been a horror show to put it nicely........ yall keep sounding like these fukking trad wives calling for a return to something that wasn't