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Chapter 4 - Argument 3: Social network has the power to make individuals jerks. Many people believe that you should pick your potential mate depending on how you behave around them. This pearl of knowledge, however, applies to technology as well as partnerships. Social networking can promote scumbag conduct. On social media, insulting posts, patronizing remarks, and trolling are all fairly prevalent. Even during the mid-1970s, while social networking was still in its infancy, the author saw that his behavior increased when he employed it. There weren't any analytically personalized feeds or up/down voting. However, the writer could frequently find himself in contentious online debates over irrelevant topics, such as which person understood more about different brands of pianos. People frequently fall victim to the competition for reputation and approval on social media. Here is where factor A of the BUMMER digital marketing—Attention Capture Resulting in Asshole Supremacy—comes into play. Sadly, the greatest assholes frequently receive the most notice, which has a domino effect: more individuals are compelled to grow up and act more like assholes. What causes this to occur? According to the author's theory, every one of us has a switch inside of us that may have been turned to either the lonely or group mode. Despite being more careful, individuals are more creative and uninhibited when they are alone. Due to their lack of concern for where they fall in the hierarchical order, they often seem to be friendlier. When social status concerns take precedence above all other considerations, people shift into pack mode. Consider the influential politicians and entrepreneurs who contest the reality of climate crisis, for example. They have gone into full-pack mode. They believe that climate change research is a cunning scheme intended to strip them of their own money and influence, which are the things that grant them status in society within their "gang," since they are so preoccupied with these things. Because social acknowledgment and social status are the only things that count on social networks, it pushes us to stay in group mode. This leads to a statistical movement in society as a whole toward acting more like an asshole since, broadly speaking, the more offensive and wrathful a post is, the more notice it garners. There are other models available! For example, LinkedIn approaches it uniquely. There, career success takes precedence above social posing, and individuals there typically behave better. Chapter 5 - Argument 4: Social network helps spread false information on a large scale. In real life and online, other people frequently influence our decisions. Need a trustworthy medical professional? You'll probably use Google to search for information and compare reviews. You're looking for a hilarious clip to view. Most likely, you'll choose the one with the most views. But consider this: Due to bogus persons, that doctor appeared highly in your search queries and that clip has had a lot of views. The term "fake" does not imply "superficial." When we say fake, we take it literally. Online, fake individuals are commonplace. Although their profiles may appear genuine at first, fake-people manufacturers, or businesses that offer phony followers for money, actually control the accounts. For instance, a New York Times piece from the beginning of 2018 claimed that the average cost of 20,000 phony Twitter followers was $225. Services like Ashley Madison, where users can allegedly meet adulterous people and plan an affair, arguably could not function at all without phony people. It has been claimed that the website employed fictitious ladies to persuade users to buy more expensive profiles. Here is where factor F—Fake crowds and Faker community—comes into play since fakeness is a problem for people outside of the BUMMER community as well because it distorts the truth there as well. For example, BUMMER frequently produces the craziest conspiracies. This occurs because BUMMER sites are all about gaining attention and spreading paranoia and ludicrous notions is a great way to do so. Fake news, sensationalism, and memes are just a few of the various ways that conspiracy theories are disseminated. The bots behind the bogus accounts also take up these stories, links, and memes in BUMMER's echo chambers, where they are loudly amplified. Just think about getting shots. Without vaccines, we would still be suffering from diseases that now seem like relics of a past era. Vaccines have saved innumerable lives. However, some parents choose not to get their kids vaccinated despite the immeasurable benefit that vaccines represent. They have been persuaded by BUMMER's paranoia-inspiring phony stories, hashtags, and advertising to believe that vaccinations are bad and hazardous and that they result in autism, among other absurd assertions. This is terrifying. More clever people are basing their ideas on information spread by people who don't exist, which puts more kids in danger of dying from diseases that we ought to no longer be concerned about. Chapter 6 - Arguments 5 and 6: Social network makes us less empathetic and pits people against one another. Fire! In a busy facility, uttering this ominous monosyllable might have deadly results. It could start a stampede, which could result in fatalities. Conversely, if you say it as soon as you see flames shooting out of an occupied car's engine, you just may save the driver. Context is crucial. It does not just dictate the outcomes of a particular statement, but it also gives that statement meaning. In addition to indicating the firing of a weapon, shouting "Fire!" can also indicate that you think a piece of certain music is hot. Depending on the situation, we constantly modify our language and delivery. If you were speaking to a class of children, you wouldn't employ the exact manner or candor that you would while you were having a romantic meal with your partner. BUMMER alters context, or more precisely, it places individuals into its context. Numbers that represent the input you've supplied to the BUMMER system are crucial to the context of BUMMER. How many people have liked your posts? How many people follow you? On BUMMER platforms, these measurements come to symbolize the person you are. As a result, individuals will go to great lengths, including using other people's comments in silly settings, to increase their numbers. Also, keep in mind that numerous of these "individuals" aren't human. Not only does this render worthless anything you post online, but it also demonstrates how superficial civilization is. BUMMER encourages safe behavior by placing a premium on gaining more likes, views, and followers. Numerous reporters have been forced to sacrifice comfort on the temple of traffic optimization to thrive in this atmosphere, rendering their labor almost as useless as any other form of internet sensationalism. Empathy is also damaged by the absence of a framework. Even so, you can't have sympathy for someone if you can't comprehend them. Herein lies the role of item C: forcing information down the throats of individuals. On BUMMER systems, everyone's feed appears differently due to algorithmic customization. Content that has been specially crafted for each of us is being fed to us. The inability to comprehend those who have encountered different stuff results from this. Imagine being present in a setting where everyone is using their phones. It's impossible to pinpoint the cause of someone's sudden anger or sadness. You can assume that they read or saw something disturbing, yet you can't be certain of what it was. Online, it constantly works like this. Because BUMMER strips us of our one shared experience with tailored feeds, we appear crazy to one another. Chapter 7 - Argument 7: Social media thrives on unfavorable feelings. Living in a society devoid of meaning or sympathy is a surefire way to be unhappy. However, BUMMER businesses also take away other aspects of your enjoyment. Inevitably, social networking networks set absurdly high expectations for appearance and social position. After all, every individual on that social network will be what you're comparing yourself to while you're online, not just your friends or your coworkers. Furthermore, you are probably not the most attractive or successful person around. In essence, Facebook researchers practically bragged about their capacity to inflict unhappiness on their targets without the latter being aware of it. Why brag about something like that? Remember that Facebook's people are indeed the product, thus the capacity to influence users—whether favorably or unfavorably—will inevitably attract Facebook's actual customers, the marketers whose objective is to influence potential customers to purchase their goods. Naturally, Facebook highlights the good it is bringing to the world, including the social connections and international network it has enabled. However, there is no reason why these clear advantages could not emerge without the unmistakable drawbacks enforced by BUMMER. When you could maybe just connect online without being tricked, why would you accept that your actions are monitored and your information traded in return for social contact? One of the reasons for this is because BUMMER is the sole game available in the area. Although we may be aware of the negative effects of social media, we nevertheless use it to engage in competition because we are competitive and strive to attract the most followers or post the most interesting information. After all, it appears like everyone else is doing it as well. However, competing with everyone else—which is basically about everyone—is a definite thing to ruin, so believing that you lost is another cause for discontentment.