• immutable@lemm.ee
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    9 hours ago

    I never really understood the idea of the popular kids in high school. I wasn’t popular but wasn’t unpopular, just sorta a regular dude.

    I remember thinking how odd it was that people liked people simply because a lot of people liked that person. Or that those people felt like they were better than others because a lot of people liked them.

    Then I graduated and got into the real world and there were celebrities but beyond that there were no popular kids anymore. And celebrities were generally well known for some actual thing they could do exceptionally well, acting, singing, sports, etc.

    Then social media gave us influencers which are just popular kids for adults. People follow them because lots of people follow them and some of them are genuinely talented but a lot of them are just flexing with wealth (or pretending to) or just attractive.

    I remember being relieved that the “popular kids” was a thing people grew out of, and kinda appalled that we somehow engineered it back into adulthood.

    • Ben Hur Horse Race@lemm.ee
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      2 days ago

      they really sadly do influence a lot of people. I used to think it was a bad name for them because they didnt influence me, but then I realized how many people buy the shit they’re advertising

      • Psythik@lemm.ee
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        1 day ago

        I used to hate on influencers, until Alec from Technology Connections pointed out that he is one as well. Kind of hard to hate, when I listen to him when it comes to his advice on using appliances in the house properly. Was being influenced without even realizing it.

        • AtariDump@lemmy.world
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          6 hours ago

          But he talks about things I care about, like dishwashers and heat pumps and Christmas lights….

          Ok. Two out of three ain’t bad.

        • H4CK3RN4M3D4N63R570RM@lemmy.ca
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          17 hours ago

          Right!? That’s the thing though, isn’t it? ‘Influencers’ could also mean ‘teachers’, ‘parents’, etc. Like many words, there’s the traditional meaning, and the new ‘context needed’ meaning. So many unnecessary conflicts occur due to the misunderstanding. I love watching Alec’s videos because I always learn truly fascinating things. Am I being influenced? Yes. Am I hoarding Stanley Water Cups or buying trending doughnut boxes? No. I get to make more informed decisions because of Technology Connections.

      • tatann@lemm.ee
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        1 day ago

        Shouldn’t they be called herder instead ?

        I mean considering the people following them

      • CaptPretentious@lemmy.world
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        1 day ago

        I still don’t think influencer is the correct word.

        They do the same job as a billboard. They sell crappy products. If anything we could call them corporate whores.

  • GoodLuckToFriends
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    2 days ago

    Take your bets on how long until one of the idiots tries to monetize it. You just know that several of them began filming before taking any action to save themselves.