PsyPost: Erotic webcam viewers experience conflicting emotions and ethical tensions. “A new study exploring viewer experiences on erotic webcam sites reveals complex, often contradictory emotions among users, highlighting both positive and negative aspects for viewers and performers.”
The Verge: The future of the internet is likely smaller communities, with a focus on curated experiences. “Our research makes one thing clear: power is shifting back to the consumer (the fediverse signals this). Consumers crave community, but on their own terms — seeking deeper, more meaningful connections with those who truly matter (something we identified in 2014). Authenticity is at the […]
Some of my best friends in the internet.
Lol, @levhita is in that picture.
Some of my best friends in the internet.
Lol, @levhita is in that picture.
Working in AI, people ask me if I'm pessimistic. This is what keeps me up at night
The future rarely unfolds like we expect. Although Hollywood has given us plenty of technological tropes to worry about, our AI future is much more mundane and much more insidious.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-03-02/ai-and-our-technological-future/104305614
Microsoft to shut down Skype in May after over two decades
The Microsoft-owned service was a pioneer in live video calls but later lost ground to competing programs such as Zoom.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-03-01/microsoft-to-shut-down-skype-in-may/104998644
MyLondon: TikTokers dropping heavy objects on feet in viral trend ‘risk lifetime of pain’. “A podiatrist has said TikTok users risk ‘a lifetime of pain and disability’ by copying a viral trend to drop objects including air fryers and toasters on their feet. Creators on the short-form app have shared videos of themselves dropping heavy objects – including a vacuum cleaner, a glass jug […]
India Today: Harassment, plaints and mass campaign: Online hate battle takes new shape. “Digital vigilantism is reshaping India’s social media landscape, with rival groups using doxxing, harassment, and legal threats to silence dissent. Even ordinary users face coordinated intimidation, forcing public apologies under pressure.”
BREAKING NEWS: Son spends a whole year attempting to peel his dad away from the radioactive glow of conspiracy theories. 
Spoiler alert: The internet wins again. 
NPR chronicled this epic struggle as if it were the Iliad, but forgot that some battles are lost before they even begin. 
https://www.npr.org/2025/02/26/g-s1-50605/conspiracy-theories-politics-family-alternate-realities #BreakingNews #ConspiracyTheories #InternetCulture #FamilyStruggles #EpicBattles #HackerNews #ngated
Why Personal Websites Matter More Than Ever
"Look what we’re left with—no walled gardens. Just guard towers and searchlights and snarling dogs keeping us at bay."
"Personal websites matter - now, more than ever - because we can see, clearly, with our own eyes, what happens when a handful of companies control and own the medium and the message. "
"I want a world where musicians don't have to tailor their music to the 5-second attention span of a million swiping doomscrollers and can instead rely on the support of an audience who care enough not to sleepwalk their way through the Internet."
New York Times: India’s Outrage Machine Devours a Star YouTuber Over a Crude One-Liner . This link goes to a gift article. “Indians are extremely familiar with this form of obscenity — the two most common terms of abuse in Hindi refer to illicit sex acts within a family. But BeerBiceps’s jest seemed somehow a step too far. India has become fitfully intolerant of entertainment that […]
Georgia State University: New Research Unveils Key Strategies for influencer authenticity
New Research Unveils Key Strategies for influencer authenticity. “A study published in the Journal of Marketing sheds light on the complex dynamics of authenticity in influencer marketing, revealing critical insights for brands, influencers, and marketing agencies.”
Salon: Gen Z is “de-influencing” on social media. “Influencer marketing is one of the most popular strategies brands use to reach their target audiences and promote their products. For example, Fenty Beauty collaborated with influencers like Jackie Aina and Duckie Thot to showcase its inclusive range of foundation, and Gymshark teamed up with fitness influencers like Whitney Simmons and David […]
https://rbfirehose.com/2025/02/21/salon-gen-z-is-de-influencing-on-social-media/
This is an interesting take, and I find myself hoping that the fediverse and the revival of blogging will bring some of the rewilding the internet sorely needs.
We Need To Rewild The Internet
https://www.noemamag.com/we-need-to-rewild-the-internet/
"I will not argue ..."gets a new start, this time with silk sewing thread. I'm very happy with the w and less so with the I, but this will do.
Having this in the family room where I can see it while I'm online has been immensely helpful to me in protecting my peace & expendable energy. Indeed, I have not been arguing with ignorant assholes online (or off) and it's going swimmingly. #embroidery #internetCulture
ETA picture
Rock Paper Shotgun: What is a “hangout game”?. “Identifying a new genre is a fool’s task, but I’ve never been wise. Sometimes a blossoming genre can be obvious, as when a huge success like Doom or Dark Souls comes along and inspires games for decades to follow. But sometimes a new genre is quiet, low-key, hiding just beneath the surface of a tumultuous industry. Sometimes you have to go […]
https://rbfirehose.com/2025/02/15/rock-paper-shotgun-what-is-a-hangout-game/
The internet be like:
You stole millions of dollars from senior citizens. Do you want to come on my podcast and sell your newest sales course?
Then we can talk about aliens for 2 hours.
Mashable: They met on Tumblr, and their relationship outlasted their accounts . “Before Tumblr lost its way through multiple sales, banning explicit content and losing droves of users, the microblogging site was the place to be online. Like any good social media platform, it brought people together, including couples.”
A Weird Corner of the Internet – Floor 796
In the sea of generic social media and governments speed running their way to Nazism Floor 796 brings back some good old internet oddness. I spent 20 minutes scrolling around absorbing what’s happening and I still could spend time seeing what’s going on.
If you know of more odd places online I’d love to see you share them.
https://curtismchale.ca/2025/02/12/a-weird-corner-of-the-internet-floor-796/
#LinksOfInterest #internetculture #popculture
