I wonder if a better analogy for social media compared to society might be corn (in the American sense) consumption alone vs a more balanced diet. As I understand it, corn by itself lacks some important nutrients that can be supplied by other foods, but Europeans did not understand that and e.g. the Italians eating polenta tended to suffer many health problems despite having plenty to eat. So far as our bodies and brains can tell, polenta is filling and curbs the demand for food, yet starves us, and social media seems to fulfill our need for socializing while starving us socially.
Glad to see someone else is thinking about this sort of thing!
I wonder if a better analogy for social media compared to society might be corn (in the American sense) consumption alone vs a more balanced diet. As I understand it, corn by itself lacks some important nutrients that can be supplied by other foods, but Europeans did not understand that and e.g. the Italians eating polenta tended to suffer many health problems despite having plenty to eat. So far as our bodies and brains can tell, polenta is filling and curbs the demand for food, yet starves us, and social media seems to fulfill our need for socializing while starving us socially.
Glad to see someone else is thinking about this sort of thing!