Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter is what first introduced me to the topic of decentralized platforms. Prior to the downfall of Twitter, I was a frequent user for about a decade. When I would delete Instagram for the sake of my mental health, I still clung to Twitter as my safe space. So when Musk took over the platform, it immediately felt different, and I left without hesitation. It was a sad day to exit the platform that allowed me to meet a lot of my once just “Twitter friends” in real life, who are still my closest friends. What once was a great platform, has now become a place for bigotry, misinformation, and extremism.
Once I left Twitter, I didn’t seek out any decentralized platforms to join because Twitter was where I had made so many connections with people, and those people weren’t switching over to another platform. I actually have’t posted on any social media platforms in about two years. Starting over somewhere new seemed too strange at the time, like being alone in the ocean just hoping to find a human to connect with. I also didn’t fully understand what decentralized platforms were or what options existed at that time.
Centralized platforms, which are controlled by one company, have some benefits to them, such as having general community guidelines they adhere to and having a large user base, making them feel more inviting and less lonely. Because of the massive amount of users, there’s no running out of content to post and consume. But a downside of centralized platforms is that the content and data shared by users is owned by the platform, not the user, which means they can delete your content for any reason they’d like.
Decentralized platforms, are not controlled by a company, are an alternative for people who want more user control and security of their data and content. They also offer portability, which is the ability to move your profile from one platform to another. If centralized platforms offered portability of communities, I likely would have joined a decentralized platform and migrated with my top communities from Twitter to an app like Bluesky.
I would like to see the big centralized platforms become decentralized as a means for users to control our own data and content, but I don’t really see that happening any time soon. I think what we, as a society, need to do is advocate for decentralized platforms and destigmatize the idea of moving over to open server platforms. The more these platforms grow and gain support, the more seriously they’ll be taken in society and they can begin to pave the way for a more user-driven online world.
Ultimately, I believe that the responsibility of forming our ideal internet and social platforms lies in our own hands. Online communities that foster healthy and productive collaboration have the power to create a whole new era of social media. It’s just a matter of time. Now that I know more about what decentralized platforms look like, I plan to sign up for Bluesky and find my unique algorithm. The more I can learn about decentralized platforms from first-hand user experience, the better I can advocate for it and encourage others to join in on the collaboration.
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