My cat is funny. Sometimes when I’m sitting outside, I peek over and see him staring at me with his body halfway behind a tree or corner. He also will poke his head around doors so that all I can see of him is one eye. I call it creeping. It’s when you’re watching or observing, without drawing attention to yourself, and lately, I’ve been thinking about how many people are creeping online.
Most people online never message, comment, or write a blip. They go about their digital business as close to being a ghost as our tracked ISPs will allow us to be. Silent viewers. And lately, I’ve been thinking that it’s kind of weird. Why do so many of us feel the need to not participate in the internet happening around us? Do some of us have nothing to say? Or is the online world more of a place where we look to absorb things for ourselves – knowledge, culture, or entertainment – rather than interact with other people.
Social media, in particular, is supposed to be…well…SOCIAL! But that is not the case. In the past few weeks, I’ve asked my friends and followers to interact with me, asking them questions, sending DMs, responding to silly posts, etc. And every single time I feel like the weird one. Like I am breaking some kind of digital protocol that you don’t bother others online. (The only exceptions happen to be my close friends and family, who respond regularly.) While other bloggers and artists are often more keen to reply and share, I’m continuously perplexed by how often an incentive to interact is met with crickets. Is this because people are using social media as the ultimate voyeuristic tool, watching others without them knowing? Or is it sheer laziness? By the latter I mean it has become another form of entertainment. It’s not really social; it’s mostly just observing what those close to you are up to, neither participating nor engaged beyond the visual stimulation.
Meeting people online is weird and scary. Or that’s what you’re supposed to think, anyway. But I have met some of the most wonderful, supportive, and inspiring people through the internet. Jon just went on a camping trip to Canada with people he had met through the internet! And while that’s a step further than I would take – being a young lady and all – I still think there’s a whole world of friendships and interactions that people are simply not making. And so, if you’re hanging out here on my blog, I encourage you to say hi! Or next time you’re browsing someone’s Instagram, leave a response. The world needs much more of the social. At least, I do anyway.
Do you comment online or interact with people you don’t know personally? Share your thoughts with me below!
12 comments
While I have my own blog and I’m not afraid to share my views online, sometimes I get more out of merely taking in and absorbing content. Musing over it and thinking about what my thoughts about a thing truly are. As an introvert I do that internally – without interacting. That’s kind of my modus operandi in much of my life experiences.
I don’t need to stand out. I don’t need to always be heard. I don’t need to be seen.
But I need to hear. I need to see. I need to observe how others interact with the world to gauge a better understanding of it for myself. Cycles back to the introvert shite again, I suppose. I feel a lot of people might be like this.
On The Cusp | https://on-th3-cusp.blogspot.com/
There’s totally a level of voyeurism online, and I definitely partake. I love a peek into other people’s lives, but I do try to interact with people who are really creating unique content or that I love what they do.
I agree with Natalie that on a lot of blogs, the comments mainly consist of other bloggers promoting their blogs. I also see more and more blogs where the bloggers only content is a post promoting something and it’s not always acknowledged.
I enjoy reading a good discussion in the comments section. I think it’s getting rare as so many blogs get more commercialized.
Yes, I frequently do make at least short comments especially about awesome photographs of cats, dogs or horses as well as to people in creative outfits or picturesque settings. I have written longer responses to someone’s questions or requests for help with an issue bothering them.
P.S. Always love your posts !
If a blogger writes a particularly raw and vulnerable post, I will usually comment to thank them for their trust.
On most blogs, the majority of comments seem to be from other bloggers promoting their own content and that makes the conversation feel disingenuous. Creating an engaged community takes time and can’t be forced. We are too used to be drawn in by a communicative creator only to be mercilessly sold and marketed the minute we have settled in.
I don’t think it’s either voyeurism nor laziness (and calling it creeping is plain disrespectful and leaves an icky taste in my mouth), it’s simply a matter of bandwidth. I read dozens of articles every day, watch even more YT videos and see hundreds of pictures and posts across all platforms. It is impossible to engage with everybody. Sure your best friends and family do because they love you. We all have wonderful friends and family members who demand our wit, comment and attention, too.
Some creators have a beautiful communities where commenting feels safe, enriching and fun. Cup of Jo is one of them (if I read the article when it has just come out, I make sure to go back a day later to read the comments, that’s where the true gems are). If, like here, I have to log into a service that accesses my social media to comment, I won’t feel tempted to leave my two cents.
(And you can assume, if you actually take the time to write a response that engages the creator in a way that is genuine and more than “Great article, I’ll give your tips a try” that the comment will never see the light of day.)