This is the part two to my last piece The Algorithmic Future. Here's the piece incase you haven't read.
I've been saying for a while on notes and on my last article that this is going to get weird and speculative. This is where that happens. The underlying idea that algorithms drive culture is easy enough to swallow. But, there are some worrying implications I need to drive home.
Let me begin with a seemingly unrelated question
What creates a fanatic? What factors lead to a zealot?
There are plenty of answers. Indoctrination, lying, abuse, manipulation, conformity, drugs, and a host of outside factors. But what if someone is born predisposed to obsession? What if an internal process pushes someone towards enthusiastic devotion at the cost of everything else?
We know that men and women were thrown into monastic institutions against their will. Families, superiors and institutions compelled child and adolescents to become a monk or nun. But some people willingly joined. Some people happily took vows of silence and chastity. Some people happily took part in grim religious rituals and practices. What if those kinds of people never left society? What if they are still around but in a new form?
We know that genetics can have an impact on disorders like alcoholism and addiction. Mental illness can run in families, so why can't other types of mindset.
You could argue that we are a more advanced, learned society. That is somewhat true. Religion is becoming less popular. Knowledge about abuse, brainwashing, and manipulation is more widespread than ever. We as a society are more open about mental health and mental illness.
But what do we call people who trade their cars for McDonald’s sauce?
What type of behavior drives some to spend millions of dollars on a mobile game?
What compels people to get so angry over media personalities they are driven to murder?
You can find articles online of similar behavior. People doing outrageous things for pop culture. These fanatics, zealots, and obsessives who, years ago would've sat atop pillars and thrown themselves into thorny bushes, now spend thousands on plastic figurines.
You may be thinking, "this isn't so bad, just a bunch of weirdos being weird." But let's think about the nature of today's products. When you buy an Apple computer, are you just buying the computer? Are you buying a computer or an ecosystem? An ecosystem of interrelated products and systems that makes switching away difficult. Switching from Apple to Android isn't sending files and back ups over. It's an involved process.
Are you buying a simple clothing brand, or are you buying a lifestyle?
Are you buying food or are you buying a whole diet?
Are you buying a product or a narrative?
What happens when these two ideas collide?
I've had to simmer on this next topic. It's one I loathe to bring up, but it’s going to prove and drive my point home.
Your average person didn't get dragged down the Qanon rabbit hole. Your average person saw what Qanon was peddling and ignored it. They saw the absurdity, the "prophecies," and laughed. It's the flaw in the YouTube algorithm pipeline theory. Eventually, you are going to encounter something so absurd, so far out of left field you leave and find something else. What about someone not that smart? Someone gullible, someone predisposed to weird "conspiracy theories," someone a little more ... fanatical? They are the perfect candidate for falling for and believing what Qanon was selling.
Despite these pieces originally being about influencers and pop culture, I felt I had to bring in a political example. I used Qanon as an example because of the mindset, belief, and extreme actions in the group. It is only a matter of time before this behavior leak into pop culture and mainstream narratives.
I will admit this is a rather grim idea. Mathematical calculations controlling human behavior and unintentionally creating people obsessed with extreme narratives. This idea is something I've been thinking about and mulling over for years now. There's even more layers that get progressively more absurd. I refuse to go that deep, this is far enough.
This kind of piece is why I call this blog the "Variety Hour." Too light and I restrict myself from being serious. Too somber and I can't write about light hearted topics.
When you walk away from this piece I hope you have left with the kernel of something important, something impactful.