jennadianne

I am always very proud to say I have not watched the news since December 2021. After COVID, the election of Joe Biden and the January 6th riots (just to name a few things) I decided to actively NOT watch or consume news. It definitely took some getting some getting used to because watching the news became a part of my everyday routine.

When I got up in the morning, as I got ready in the morning.

At work, all day.

Fast forward to March 2023 and I do not miss it. For the most part, I get my news from TikTok. And I guess that is the “problem”. TikTok is how most people get their information now. If there is something that I feel I need more information I will seek it out on my own. If there is something too heavy for the day, or is something I am not into I just keep scrolling. And guess whit’s if its something I scroll past quickly TikTok usually doesn’t show me that content again. As opposed tmainstreamstream media which keeps shoving things down your throat.

So to find out that the US government is trying to actively ban TikTok. Essentially a company they have no control over does not sit well with me. Like at all.

Before finding out that HEARINGS are being held to ban TikTok I’ve been seriously questioning my role on social media. If it’s a place I want to be. A world I want to continue to participate in. I’ve been online for such a long time, and I’ve seen how the internet and socializing online has changed and it’s been hefty. At the end of the day, it’s not a fun place. I have definitely taken the time over the years to curate my feed and whom I follow to directly reflect who and what I want to see. To see things that bring me joy.

I have found myself being very mindful about what I post and when I post. Not wanting to share things that I want to share. That is when the thought occurred to me that after YEARS of watching the mainstream media I just turned it off one day and never went back. I started to wonder if I could do that with social media. Just turn it off.

Then this morning, I posted a photo of me blowing out a birthday candle from dinner last night with the caption ‘Cheers to 39’. I don’t know what I was thinking. My birthday was weeks ago. And I hate posting about my birthday, the responses always seems to fake. Like none of these people would know it was my birthday if social media and/or myself did not tell them. I did it to myself, but the ‘reactions’ and HBD comments just rolled in all day. People at work came up and wished me well. It was all very nice, but also so uncomfortable. I was not thinking when I made that post. But that post and the reaction I received is really pushing me to at the very least remove the Meta apps from my phone.

The Meta apps are distracting and the fact that the US government wants to “punish” TikTok for doing something that Meta and all these other US companies are already doing is disappointing. I have been on FB since its conception; when you needed a college email address to even access it. (Talk about seeing something evolve over time). I open their apps now and literally mindlessly scroll. I have no idea what I’m looking for; there is nothing there.

At my big age of 39, with almost grown ass kids, there are so many other things I want to focus on. And mindlessly scrolling my phone during any given time of the day is such a waste of time. I am getting literally nothing from the Meta apps. I have no real desire to post my daily ins and outs; no one is asking about my interests I do post. So why be there. When I post honestly there is no reaction or follow up conversation. It’s really just a waste of time.

At this point I really do not have a decision either way. I know for sure though that if TikTok gets banned in the US I will be leaving the other social media apps. If the government is going to now control the content on my phone, they do not get free personal data that I’ve supplied from FB and IG.

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