> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://onemanandhisblog.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Accountability for my TikTok Heresy - URL: https://onemanandhisblog.com/2023/01/accountability-for-my-tiktok-heresy/ - Published: 2023-01-26T15:43:21.000Z - Updated: 2023-01-26T18:39:49.000Z - Description: Plus some explanation of why social platforms go bad, and how the FT’s Mastodon experiment died. - Author: Adam Tinworth - Tags: #newsletter, TikTok, Social Media, podcasting, games journalism, mastodon ## Defending the case against TikTok One of the things I miss about the old days of blogging is the collegiate feel, the discussion between sites, and the sense of dialogue. And so, it was a *delight* to be invited back on *The Addition* podcast by Charlotte, to defend [my aberrant views on things like TikTok and Substack](https://onemanandhisblog.com/2023/01/four-things-publishers-should-give-up-in-2023/). It was a great conversation, and I hope you enjoy listening to it as much as I enjoyed recording it: [Here’s What Publishers Need to Give up in 2023Listen now (35 min) | Some of these are controversial...![](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fbucketeer-e05bbc84-baa3-437e-9518-adb32be77984.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4bf73eed-ae9b-4cc5-a20a-ab7d5bec2ac3%2Fapple-touch-icon-1024x1024.png)The AdditionCharlotte Henry![](https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1484807352052-23338990c6c6?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=MnwzMDAzMzh8MHwxfHNlYXJjaHw2fHxvbmxpbmUlMjBwdWJsaXNoaW5nfGVufDB8fHx8MTY3NDY1NjE1Mw&ixlib=rb-4.0.3&q=80&w=1080)](https://theaddition.substack.com/p/heres-what-publishers-need-to-give#details) ## How social networks become traps One thing I think people missed in [the piece](https://onemanandhisblog.com/2023/01/four-things-publishers-should-give-up-in-2023/) that I was defending to Charlotte was that when I described TikTok as an attention roach motel, I wasn't just talking about how hard it is to get traffic out. (This is entirely my fault, looking at the way I phrased it. I'll rewrite that once this is done.) It's also about the way that these platforms evolve over time to become traps, even for those who are successful on them — possibly *especially* those people. Cory Doctorow has written a blistering screed about how this happens and just why it's such an issue: > This is enshittification: surpluses are first directed to users; then, once they're locked in, surpluses go to suppliers; then once **they're* locked in, the surplus is handed to shareholders and the platform becomes a useless pile of shit. From mobile app stores to Steam, from Facebook to Twitter, this is the enshittification lifecycle. You can read the whole thing at his site: [Pluralistic: Tiktok’s enshittification (21 Jan 2023) – Pluralistic: Daily links from Cory Doctorow![](https://i0.wp.com/pluralistic.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/cropped-guillotine-French-Revolution.jpg?fit=192%2C192&ssl=1)Pluralistic: Daily links from Cory Doctorow No trackers, no ads. Black type, white background. Privacy policy: we don't collect or retain any data at all ever period.Cory Doctorow![](https://i0.wp.com/craphound.com/images/21Jan2023.jpg?w=840&ssl=1)](https://pluralistic.net/2023/01/21/potemkin-ai/?ref=onemanandhisblog.com) Or, if you prefer, it's also on *Wired*: [The ‘Enshittification’ of TikTokOr how, exactly, platforms die.![](https://www.wired.com/verso/static/wired/assets/favicon.ico)WIREDCondé Nast![](https://media.wired.com/photos/63cec5c01628debb3e3ed677/191:100/w_1280,c_limit/Enshittification-of%20TikTok-Ideas-1229058759.jpg)](https://www.wired.com/story/tiktok-platforms-cory-doctorow/?ref=onemanandhisblog.com) ## The FT kills its Mastodon server Did you know that the *Financial Times* had set up its own Mastodon instance? No, I didn't either. Well, its brief life is over, killed by management problems in more than one sense. Yes, the technical side of running it became an issue. But the senior management weren't delighted by this rogue experiment. This paragraph made me laugh like a drain: > Compliance, security and reputational risks are substantial and evergrowing in unpredictable ways. Though largely hypothetical, these risks were judged serious enough to exercise management at the highest levels. Those people have better things to do than to clean up our mess. Believe you me, as some one who spent the latter part of the 2000s launching and managing online communities for a publisher, *management never want to do it*. It involves ceding control to the readers in a way that they're just not comfortable with. You can read the whole tale here - but, be warned, you need to be registered to read it: [We tried to run a social media site and it was awfulExtinction looms for FTAV’s Mastodon presence![](https://www.ft.com/__origami/service/image/v2/images/raw/ftlogo-v1%3Abrand-ft-logo-square-coloured?source=update-logos&format=png&width=194&height=194)Financial TimesBryce Elder![](https://www.ft.com/__origami/service/image/v2/images/raw/https%3A%2F%2Fd1e00ek4ebabms.cloudfront.net%2Fproduction%2F9aa193c3-4694-4caf-94ec-d50cfe70c91f.png?source=next-opengraph&fit=scale-down&width=900)](https://on.ft.com/3HcWYD1?ref=onemanandhisblog.com) 🐘 My quiet little instance is still up and running, by the way. You [can join in here](https://follow.onemanandhisblog.com/?ref=onemanandhisblog.com), if you fancy it… ## Quickies - 🎙️ [Podcast exclusivity is on the wane](https://variety.com/vip/podcast-exclusivity-is-quickly-becoming-an-outdated-strategy-1235495652/?ref=onemanandhisblog.com) — platforms are less willing to pay for it in hard times. This is *good* news. Podcasting is an open standard, and this retreat makes it less likely that, say, Spotify can “own” it. - 💰 Talking of which, [Spotify has a hiring freeze and layoffs](https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/spotify-wipes-vacancies-from-global-jobs-board-as-hiring-freeze-hits-after-500-layoffs/?ref=onemanandhisblog.com). What's the betting on the Joe Rogan deal not being renewed? - 🤖 An in-depth look at what was [happening with CNN's AI content](https://www.theverge.com/2023/1/19/23562966/cnet-ai-written-stories-red-ventures-seo-marketing?ref=onemanandhisblog.com). ## Plug corner We have new dates for my new(ish) social media course. It's five weeks, online. The first run went really well. The second will be even better. Sign up here: [Essential social media skills for media professionalsThis four-session online course will provide you with understanding of the psychological and technical dynamics of social media and help you develop strategies that will deliver results into the future![](https://www.journalism.co.uk/newsite/images/favicon.png)Journalism.co.uk![](https://www.journalism.co.uk/assets/149/Essential_social_media.png)](https://www.journalism.co.uk/vocational-skills-study/essential-social-media-skills/s43/a960371/?ref=onemanandhisblog.com) ## Why do so many journalists not understand gaming? > Jesus. This has also been a sentiment in multiple TV reviews of the Last of Us recently. Games are a huge cultural blind spot for so many publishers [https://t.co/sJU0AE8iVT](https://t.co/sJU0AE8iVT?ref=onemanandhisblog.com) > > — Chris Moran (@chrismoranuk) [January 24, 2023](https://twitter.com/chrismoranuk/status/1617882557194072064?ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=onemanandhisblog.com) A reminder: gaming is [bigger than music and video *combined*](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-46746593?ref=onemanandhisblog.com) in the UK. Why are journalists still writing nonsense like the above? n00bs.