I wasted my day on Bluesky Social and no, I’m not sorry
I’d like to say I saw Bluesky Social’s big moment coming. After all, I joined the social network in April 2023, when few knew about it, and Twitter founder and ex-charmingly quirky tech CEO Jack Dorsey was running it.
I did some digging and despite the worn interface, I called it “quiet, reserved, attentive or even polite.” Overall, BlueSky is the social media equivalent of Shangri-La.”
This week, however, seemed like the opening hours of a classic Black Friday Sale at Macy’s, as millions of people reportedly joined Bluesky, partly motivated by what could potentially be the impending collapse of X (formerly Twitter). Sorry, it’s not really a collapse, but instead has a moral collapse, because it’s run by one narcissist who is now aligned with the new Narcissist-in-Chief of the US.
Instagram’s Threads has served as the social media safe haven for X refugees for months, but as good and popular as that platform has become, it has yet to replace the real-time news and information nature that made the original Twitter so appealing. . Instagram CEO and Threads leader Adam Mosseri has made it quite clear that Threads is not driven by news, and he shows little intention to help the company thrive on the platform. at least not yet.
Stefon would love this
I don’t know if Bluesky will be any different, but right now it’s the hottest place on social media. If Saturday Night Live’s Stefon were to describe it, he might say:
“If you’re looking for a good time on social media, look no further. New York’s hippest social media club is Bluesky. Inside you’ll find everything: posts about Alf’s private life, ex-Twitter bums with cute cat photos, and Lizzo who wonders if the Internet is fun again.”
Since I last checked Bluesky – which was months ago – the platform has grown across mobile and desktop. It’s a cleaned up version of old Twitter or current Threads, but still lacks some key features like polls and GIFS.
The activity was so hectic on Tuesday that Bluesky Social crashed and started delivering blank pages and unsophisticated messages. It really felt like Twitter 1.0, all that was missing was a Failed whale.
So many people from so many walks of life participated that they sometimes encountered their doppelgängers. It seems that while Bluesky operated mostly in the shadows, some took it upon themselves to take the handles of famous people. Lizzo And Mara Wilson (author and the little girl from Mrs. Doubtfire) both found their fake selves. Lizzo resorted to creating a new handle, Lizzobeeating,bsky.social, to combat the @lizzo imposter.
The imposter syndrome
Soon I was arguing with people on Bluesky about the need for a real verification system and was quickly reminded that one already exists. All you have to do is set up a domain for yourself and do something with DNS, and… Right. No normal person will do that.
I found myself having fun on Bluesky. It felt like a homecoming of sorts as more and more people finally gave up on Twitter and marched to the newer platform. It’s not clear whether they also gave up on Threads – I see no reason to do so – or planned to support multiple platforms.
The point is that these distributed platforms allow you to ostensibly post in one place and have it appear elsewhere. I do this on Threads, where all my posts are also pushed to the Federated platform. I don’t frequent these other platforms, but appreciate the improved audience.
I now have about 1,000 followers on Bluesky, about a fifth of what I have on Threads and miles away from the 89K (and falling) I still have on the dying X. I don’t know what that number means anymore. Followers do not equal engagement, and that is the only reason I post on social media.
Thread engagement has improved in recent months, but is unpredictable. Bluesky is so new that everyone is jumping on almost every post. That won’t last.
When will the good times end?
I guess now I’m wondering what to do next. Do I close X (Twitter) and spend all my time on Bluesky? Should I keep Threads as a backup? Even if I leave The Internet is deleting historical data far too quickly, and I have no interest in joining that unfortunate trend. But staying active on the platform seems less attractive by the second.
Bluesky, on the other hand, has such a fresh face that it just has appeal. I know that won’t last long, just like babies don’t stay cute. They grow up to be dirty kids and then sullen teenagers before becoming uninteresting adults (or worse).
No matter what happens, Bluesky will never recreate Twitter 1.0, just like Threads can’t really replace it. As a society we have moved away from that. Open discourse on social media may start out fresh and sweet, but it always curdles. I think we should just enjoy this Bluesky moment – I’m sure – but maybe also start thinking about how we can relive these experiences in real life.