https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2023/09/reddit-blocks-opting-out-of-personalized-ads-starts-paying-users/
Like it or not, Reddit wants to "improve ad performance."
Certainly incentivising users to create the most attention-grabby content for money won't possibly lead to a lowest-common-denominator-fueled breakdown of what historically made the platform useful. Nahhh. No way.
It does make me want to jump back in to do it though. I don't care if I become the next hated internet moron, they make bank
Yeah I wouldn’t count on Reddit to run this in a competent way that will actually make anyone a decent amount of money.
The reason the stick is so long is so you can’t actually get to the carrot. You just need to think you can.
Imagine thinking you're going to muscle in on the turf of people like Gallowboob.
You won't be making shit, brother, not without an insane amount of luck.
Redditor for over a dozen years, this was the final nail for me. Lemmy is feeling like the good old days. Memmy for Lemmy is pretty great. The fediverse has its growing pains but in a few years I hope the enshittification will be a thing of the past.
I know I'm in the minority but I have mixed feelings about targeted advertising.
If being shown none isnt an option Id rather be shown things that I might have a passing interest in over just being bombarded with advertisements for a male 25 to 40.
The problem is not necessarily that the ads are personalized. The problem is, to make them personalized, companies have to collect personal data. This turns you into a product, because they can/will sell your info to other corporations.
I wonder whether a less evil version of what Google tried to push would be a better solution to this.
That is, a user might flag themselves - or let their browser suggest something then accept it, but this is all local - as "30-40y old, american, male, passing interest in programming, big into archery and horseback riding", from a big list of possible interests basically. And then ad companies put ads into categories and that's how they get selected.
I’ve never understood this so maybe you could help. Personally, I rather see ads for things I’m not interested in so I’m not tempted to buy anything. Why would you prefer to be manipulated to buying things?
And, just out of curiosity, where do you fall in the conversation about today’s economy and personal finances? Are you doing well for yourself or are you struggling? Do you have any thoughts on targeted advertising influencing people to be better consumers while they complain about not being able to afford a decent life?
Im fine with it because this isnt me.
Jack and the beanstalk (the folk tale) was first published it 1734 (the story of a boy who goes to market with a cow and is talked into exchanging it for "magic beans") in 1734 the key premise of the story was a person making terrible purchases.
The expression "a fool and his money will soon be parted" or a variation of that was first published in 1573 "A foole & his money, be soone at debate: which after with sorow, repents him to late."
People being dumb with money isnt new, if you think targeted advertising, or any modern form of advertising is the root cause (admittedly it definitely cant be helping the situation) Id argue that this is a part of the base human condition.
It's not a base human condition. Things like buying a hawaii holiday on credit or advertisements for gambling in sports competitions are just evil ways in which people with large capital and brains squeeze out poorer and lower educated people, and shouldn't be allowed at all. It is not even an anti-capitalist stance, a capitalist economy can thrive just fine without that kind of misleading. A prime task of a government is to protect people from eachother.
If being shown none isnt an option
Not being shown ads is always an option.
Get an adblocker. ublock origin for PC and android firefox is great. Adaway on android blocks most ads from other apps. And I don't use apple products, but I've heard Adguard works there.
I don't care either way, but if they want to show me personalized ads, I'm often less likely to buy the specific product being advertised to because I don't need to deal with that kind of thirstiness for a toothbrush.
Im a car guy, so Im always interested in who is selling what, for how much, what features it has and so on. I have absolutely no intent on buying the new Kia EV, but I will read about it briefly.
Moved a couple of weeks ago. New apartment didn't come with a washer or dryer, so we did some research and purchased a package. It's died down a bit now but I was inundated with adverts and recommendations for washers and dryers for like two months.
I looked up directions to a mattress store and got 3 years of mattress ads on YouTube. I literally didn't get anything else in ads aside from mattresses
They're playing the long con, hoping that in ten years or so you'll remember the brands that annoyed you.
I mostly get pregnancy and feminine hygiene related stuff nowadays. Like even YouTube tosses in a bunch of videos about pregnancy and delivering now and then. I'm a gay man, so the likelihood of me ever needing a menstrual cup, disc, or encouragement when about to give birth is very low. On the other hand I'm strangely well versed in those subjects now, so if someone wants a gay dude to cheer them on through their pregnancy I'm their guy!
Now I'm just imagining a dude going around a maternity ward cheering on mothers in labor like it's the most intense sports match ever.
I was reading an Israeli news website for updates on the 2014 Israel Gaza war back when it was happening and I was getting "hot Jewish singles" ads for a whole year afterwards.
No, but targeted ads work like this- I look up which toothbrush has the best reviews. Then I buy a toothbrush on Amazon. Then Reddit finds out about that through tracking and starts shilling toothbrushes at me. Of course, I can avoid it by not having it track me, but most people don't know how to do that.
Yeah no I did the same with a washer and dryer recently. Checked YouTube for some video reviews and walkthroughs, searched for some opinions and problems people are having. Was inundated with suggestions for washers and dryers for months after making the purchase.
Like yeah I'm totally going to buy more laundry machines. I'm starting a laundry empire, obviously!
So desperate for profitability
Lesson: loss leader web platform shit is only good when it’s losing money. And when interest rates are going up, they can’t afford to lose money.
Both X and Reddit have lost my interest. I really liked Reddit but X was and is for people that like to be told what to think.
For me, twitter was always about community engagement. It’s where I got updates from my city’s legislators, reporters, businesses, etc. It’s the best news hub. And it was the best platform for communicating with others who share my hobbies and professional interests. Not to mention the real IRL friends I had made through out the years. So, it’s not just a dumpster fire of misinformation and racism and sexism.
It was and was treated as community engagement. Hell, Twitter is where I learned that my daughter's school was closed for bad weather days.
Reddit has always been much better at building community than twitter. Twitter has always been about getting somebody voice propagated. To a huge extent the louder and more belligerent you are twitter will help amplify your message because it’s in twitters financial interest. It’s not even remotely like a public square that it loves to compare itself with.
Hold on now, I didn't say anything about "building" a community. My point was about the ability to engage with an existing community. Ya know... like a town square.
I'm not disagreeing with what you're saying but from my experience (beginning back before there was even a Twitter app), I did not have exposure to the cesspool so many complain about. Again, for me, it was about getting updates and engaging with people and organizations in my real life local and extended community. So, when the subway is delayed, a road is closed, there's looting happenig a zip code away, when a council person is running for office or trying to pass legislation, etc., Twitter was the best place to go to get that information. Now, the best I've got is my local newspaper, a handful of bot accounts on Mastodon, and RSS feeds.
Granted, I never used the official Twitter app so I was always free from the algorithm and advertising. RIP Tweetbot.
Yeah I got you. I guess I agree with you. For something current and local Twitter was your best bet. I just think it's much more about consumption than getting anybody's voice heard. This is especially true of X. The platform is there mainly for people with an existing large audience to get their message amplified. It's not there to get the smartest or most interesting voices heard.
