Oversharing

Let’s talk about oversharing!

Oversharing is purposeful exploitation. ‘They want you to overshare,’ Why? Its profitable! 

In the context of social media -  exploitation could be defined as the manipulation and use of individuals' digital behaviors and data by technology companies and social media platforms for their own profit, often without the users' full understanding or explicit consent. This form of exploitation leverages the vast amount of personal information users share online, analyzing and monetizing it through targeted advertising, content curation, and even the sale of data to third parties. It highlights a power imbalance where users, drawn into engaging deeply with these platforms, unknowingly contribute to their own exploitation by providing valuable data that is then used to further captivate their attention, shape their digital experiences, and influence their real-world perceptions and actions.

Social media as a new kind of exploitation for profit through personal data We have shifted  Towards Oversharing - From Coveted Information to Public Display. We have been Slow Conditioning towards over sharing. A Bygone Era of Privacy and Discretion:There was a time when certain personal details were considered private and not to be shared with others. Asking someone about their income or political beliefs was deemed impolite and intrusive. Prior to the emergence of social media platforms like Facebook, the only occasion when people typically disclosed such information was during official census surveys. Back then, such details were regarded as coveted pieces of information, and oversharing them was akin to showing one's cards at a poker table. The Rise of Social Media and the Erosion of Privacy. However, the advent of social media has dramatically altered our perception of privacy and what constitutes oversharing. Platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram have encouraged users to share personal details with their online connections and even with the public at large. This shift towards transparency has gradually desensitized us to the idea of keeping certain aspects of our lives private.

As a result of this cultural shift, we now live in an era where personal details are shared openly and frequently. This can have several consequences that will increase as the A.I era evolves:

1. Erosion of privacy: With so much information readily available, it becomes increasingly difficult to maintain a sense of privacy in our lives.
2. Loss of control: By sharing personal details online, we often lose control over who has access to this information and how much one can accumulate on you or how they decide to use it. 
3. Increased vulnerability: Oversharing can make us more vulnerable to identity theft, At this vary moment sure they can get your birthday and even your home address, but soon they will be able to replicate your voice, known as an A.I dub voice, or even replicate your digital likeness both of which can be used to ‘be’ you in video and even calls. You likely have seen the warnings on instagram of ‘fake’ children's voices calling their parents for ransom however it can become as horrific as begin duplicated for video porn as seen in the serious incidence that happened to Twitch user QT Cinderella, a 28 year old girl who woke up one day and was suddenly a new kind of star that she never wanted to be and sadly she had zero legal recourse available to her. It is wise to research and read her story.
4. Diminished personal boundaries: As we become more accustomed to sharing our personal lives online, our ability to establish and maintain healthy personal boundaries may be weakened, and that can bleed over into our real lives in the physical world. You’ve met people who, within the first 5 minutes of meeting them, have told you their life story. Why? This has been ramping up; this is due to social conditioning of oversharing, and now people often overshare with everyone, way too much. No one needs to know your life-defining moments or traumas when you first meet. This diminishing skill of using a filter when communicating was conditioned as it became normalized to overshare life-defining moments and traumas on Instagram and TikTok. With short-form storytelling came short-form bragging and complaining. Because users feel that their home feeds and pages are their ‘communities’, they share with their audience, thinking it is a community because they feel comfortable, forgetting it is really a group of strangers. Anyone who follows me knows I participated in this style of sharing for years, and let me tell you, it caused me nothing but issues. Issues that followed me for years, what I didn't know at the time of oversharing is there are people who watch simply to learn your wounds, your triggers. They are watching and keeping tally, and they know what you don't like, and some will even learn how to hurt you based on what you share, as in the scenario of the dreaded copycats I dealt with for years. If you don't know my story online, I had several ‘friends’ - women I actually knew in person - yet, as I began to rise and my platforms grew, they saw what I was doing and decided they would take on not only my word but even attempt to mimic my personality and mannerisms (the mannerisms were the ones that irked me the most). They copied my art and then stood in front of their subpar versions of my masterpieces and literally attempted to pretend to be me and move in the same ways - as you can imagine, I became annoyed until I became enraged by it - so what did I do? I started complaining on my Instagram stories about them, and I was showing my wound, and sharks started coming. The result of me oversharing that was not only one more but two more women to follow did the exact same thing to me! Not kind of the same thing, the exact same thing! All incidents ended in cease and desist letters and me shutting my mouth.

A Timeline of Self-Disclosure: The Oversharing Shift:

The practice of self-disclosure has undergone a remarkable transformation in the digital age Discretion was highly valued. Personal questions about salary, relationship status, or political views were considered intrusive. Privacy was respected and personal details were shared sparingly and only in trusted circles.However, social media has gradually conditioned us to be more open and willing to share these once-coveted pieces of information. The shift towards oversharing can be traced through the evolution of social media platforms and the features they introduced. How did they get us to start offering up this information?

The Profile

social media platforms began to challenge these norms. The 'profile' became a staple feature, nudging users to fill in various fields such as name, age, and location. This digital persona creation was the first step towards normalizing the public display of personal information. The digital Profile was The Beginning of Self-Disclosure being made ‘cool.’ ‘They’ made it cool for you to give your information away for free. 

The Lure of Personalization:

As platforms evolved, they introduced more features that encouraged users to share their interests and preferences. They sold this to the user that it helped users connect with like-minded individuals, but also it allowed platforms to curate content and advertisements, telling the user it was making personalization a key element of the social media experience. In reality, it was fine-tuning the user into buckets of what to show them to sell their attention for the most dollars, as advertisers could now shop by niche markets.

A Step Further:

Political Views and Relationship Status: As social media platforms expanded their features, users were prompted to share even more personal details. They were now asked to disclose their political views and relationship status, blurring the line between public and private life. These once-private details became accessible to anyone who viewed a user's profile, transforming personal beliefs and affiliations into commodities for public consumption.

Real-Time Updates:

Status updates and check-ins invited users to share their current activities and locations. Not only could you now be in someone's bedroom with them, but you could know when they were at the yoga studio or sitting at their favorite coffee shop. This feature capitalized on the human tendency to share experiences and facilitated a new level of immediacy in personal disclosure, priming users for the impulsive - Instagram to come - it's called Insta because it's INSTANT.

Overexposure:

As sharing became more habitual, the boundaries of oversharing expanded. Intimate details, once reserved for personal diaries or close family discussions, started to make their way onto public feeds, including financial achievements or struggles, health concerns, and deeply personal reflections.

The ‘Story’:

Snapchat's introduction of 'Stories,' later adopted by other platforms, pushed for even more ephemeral sharing—where content was designed to be fleeting, yet the urge to share was constant and reinforced.

Live Life Loud:

The introduction of live streaming brought real-time sharing to a new level. Users began broadcasting their activities, thoughts, and surroundings, further eroding the line between private and public spheres.

Trolls: The Reaction to Oversharing

In recent years, we've seen a counter-movement begin. At first oversharing was championed and supported and celebrated by your friends and loved ones online, it was overstood that your homepage was  YOUR HOME online, thus people who liked you came to it, in the last few years oversharing has taken a different turn this time not by the users but by the followers - when followers turn into ‘bad apples’ online we call them trolls - trolls began over sharing meaning the ‘haters’ began oversharing their opinions on others pages. 

Exercise:

To counteract the trend of oversharing, it is important to reassess our relationship with social media and develop a more balanced approach to transparency. Consider the following steps:

1. Evaluate your sharing habits: Reflect on the personal details you share online and ask yourself whether it is necessary or beneficial to disclose this information.
2. Establish boundaries: Set limits on the type of information you share and with whom you share it.
3. Educate yourself: Learn about privacy settings and best practices for protecting your personal information online.
4. Practice discretion: Think twice before sharing sensitive information and consider the potential consequences of making such details public.

By adopting a more mindful approach to social media, we can strike a balance between transparency and privacy, ensuring that we maintain control over our personal information and protect ourselves from potential risks.