Before we can really solve the problem that we're in, it's important to try to figure out how we got here and why we use the internet in the first place.
Why we do things:
3 reasons to do something
1) entertainment/relaxation
2) performance/ego
3) financial gain/survival
I boil everything down to these three factors. They're the underlying reasons for why we do/maintain certain endeavors, and the things that we do on the Internet is no different.
But I don't think that those are the reasons that ruined the internet, because these are things that apply to everyday Life as well. Not just the internet.
Ex
1) gaming
2) karaoke
3) going to the gym
4) hobbies
5) organizing things
These are just examples of things that can be done without the internet, and can subsequently be enhanced by the internet in some way through marketing.
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Ultimately it's my opinion that marketers ruined the internet.
It was marketers that sought to monetize communal spaces and fun activities online.
It was marketers that set the standards and the expectations by lying to us about metrics that were unattainable.
It was marketers that sold the stories about how people who were brought in through nepotism were actually everyday boys and girls who somehow blew up on the internet.
It was marketers who actually opened the door for everyday boys and girls so that they could blow up on the internet, then they turned around and sold us the story about how it could happen to us.
But marketers were doing these things way before the internet. It's called advertising, and that's what marketers do. They sold us out.
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Endeavors need structure in order to survive. A lot of times people put things together for performance reasons without fully committing to the necessary structure that is needed to keep that activity operational
If you don't enjoy structure then you won't enjoy financial or performance endeavors.
This is an issue that we see within different areas of life all the time. The example you gave was podcasting with your friends. Perhaps what you enjoyed was hanging out with your friends and relaxing, but it somehow got misconstrued as a performance activity. Then when it came time to apply the structure, you didn't enjoy that.
The same thing also happens with churches. People try to separate Christianity from the religion of Christianity, because they enjoy the relationship that comes with god, but they dislike the structure that is also required for the saints. It's disheartening to some people in the church when they find out that Christ elevates both the structure and the standards for relationship over time, so they don't want to do the work anymore.
I think online Fame has a lot to do with structure as well. But it is a blended activity. You can't do it with simply structure. I know a lot of people who have really good structure, really good presentations, consistent schedules, and plans for everything, but the product sucks. And then you have people who put stuff out whenever they feel like it and they blow up because they're structured in other areas of their lives.
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The anxiety and isolation are by-products of the marketing of the internet. Initially the internet was meant to be enjoyed with friends and in online communities. It was supposed to be a proxy of the already existing communities that we had in real life.
I like to use live journal as an example, or Myspace. Those two platforms were all about sharing extensions of your life with the people that you already knew. But when Facebook came along, things got much more sterile and scientific, and they slowly over time started to isolate us and turn us against each other through algorithms and other tools. There is a lot of psychological warfare that happens in social media spaces that people are unaware of.
1) algorithms
2) bots
3) sectioned servers
4) manipulation of data
5) censorship and Shadow banning
6) psyops
7) ragebait
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Solutions
Report real life
Use the internet as a proxy for what you're already doing in life, not as a source of life. Use it to connect with people that you already know, and have verified humanity. These are friends that you can jump on the phone with it anytime, but sometimes it's just easier to send an email or post on the timeline. That's okay
Be genuine. Be yourself. Be honest.
The more you think and act like marketers the more you will become like the marketers, who are inherently liars in their car. They have no truth in them. Only manipulation. People will like you for who you are or they will dislike you for the same reasons. You are the thing that splits the herd. So be okay with that.
Decide who your audience is.
I told this to my son when he did his first podcast. I told him not to think of a group of people he wants to reach, but rather think of a specific person he wants to reach. Record your podcast as if you're talking directly to that person, understanding that's how they will listen. Other people who resonate with the content of your podcast will have a lot in common with that ideal person. That's how you grow your audience.
Keep the relaxing things as the relaxing things
Don't try to turn things that you love into endeavors. You'll just ruin them. There's a reason I won't work a cook position in a restaurant anymore, and that's because I love to cook. So I won't do it as a job. People who clean for a living tend to have messy apartments. So if you have something that's near and dear to your heart, that you do as a relaxation ritual, don't try to turn that into a show. You'll only ruin the thing that you love.
Build your online content around things that you love
This may seem contradictory to the last point, but it's not. You have to connect with the first point that I made here. Use the internet as a way to report what you've already done. Trying to bring people along for the ride can be fun sometimes, but it can also be a detriment. If you're learning to play guitar, it may be fun for people to witness the journey, but it might ruin guitar for you as well. Don't spend all your time trying to cultivate a following. Spend that time doing what you love, and then bring what you love to your platform later. if you love to sing, don't put a camera in rehearsals. Finish writing and recording that song, and then show people online. The only reason you should be putting things online as part of the process, is if you are documenting the process for later, or because you find it relaxing yourself.
what ruined the internet (and what to do about it)