
Linus: Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram Are “A Disease” - paulcarroty
https://futurism.com/the-byte/linux-facebook-instagram-twitter-disease
======
severine
The link should be changed to the original interview:
[https://www.linuxjournal.com/content/25-years-later-
intervie...](https://www.linuxjournal.com/content/25-years-later-interview-
linus-torvalds)

Very recent discussion: 25 Years Later: Interview with Linus Torvalds
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19559970](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19559970)

296 points by axiomdata316 5 days ago | 145 comments

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seba_dos1
Also,
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19570880](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19570880)

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dagaci
I've never been much engaged in FB,TW or Instagram or too many Social
platforms. But I still have to disagree with Mr Linus, after all where would
we be without the Slashdot effect?

Social media simply accelerates aspects of what we are as humans. Its well
known that we humans are genetically more attracted to the negative than the
positive for obvious reasons ... and just to be circular: when was the last
time something positive Linus said made the news?

So rather than say Social media is an external invading disease i would rather
say it is an expression of what makes us human.

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kingkawn
I have spent some time studying genetics, and really have no idea what you
mean by “Its well known that we humans are genetically more attracted to the
negative than the positive for obvious reasons”

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onlydeadheroes
This is the kind of thinking social media enables. When everyone in your group
already agrees with what you say, the standards of thought fall due to lack of
challenge.

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dagaci
I didn't think it was so challenging to use the term "genetics" after all from
a reasonable point of view our genes are the blueprint of the body and our
emotional responses derive from that...

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dagaci
And before any architects reply smartly about the misuse of the term
"blueprint" see here: [https://socratic.org/questions/why-is-dna-called-the-
bluepri...](https://socratic.org/questions/why-is-dna-called-the-blueprint-of-
life)

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3xblah
"Add in anonymity, and it's just disgusting," Torvalds said. "When you don't
even put your real name on your garbage (or the garbage you share or like), it
really doesn't help."

Except when you see people you knew and respected before social media existed
posting and "liking" the same garbage. They either just do not care or they do
not know any better.

The lack of anonymity lends itself to the emergence of countless self-
promoters who specialise in posting yet more garbage, on a regular basis. The
aim of which is often directly or indirectly commercial.

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Causality1
Anonymity made for a healthier internet in my opinion. Nobody cared if
xXNinja_420Xx said he was going to kill you or that all left-handed people
deserve to be in concentration camps. Everyone still runs their fool mouth
same as they used to except now you know it's your cousin Drew or Samantha
from accounting saying it. Putting a name and a face on internet bullshit was
a horrible development.

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xXNinja_420Xx
All left-handed people deserve to be in concentration camps.

~~~
3xblah
Damn you, xXNinja_420Xx.

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welcomebrand
He's about right but it's not really a ground breaking observation.

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nkozyra
Agreed, it seems a casual observation that's heading toward universal opinion.

Though I agree with the sentiment, I'm not sure Linus carries much authority
in speaking about social media.

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bauerd
I'm not so sure a lot of people outside of HN view social media as a disease …

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thejohnconway
Social media gets a lot of bad press in the mainstream media. A lot of people
in non-tech circles talk about how to spend less time on Facebook, etc.,
because they feel it has a negative impact.

Personally, I think it's a shame big social media is such a general disaster,
because I've always had a good experience on Facebook and Twitter.

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lunchladydoris
Are they a disease, or are they symptoms?

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JumpCrisscross
> _Are they a disease, or are they symptoms?_

They’re akin to the lead in lead poisoning. Not the disease _per se_ , but the
cause thereof. Broadly speaking, ad-driven social networks are incentivised to
spread enraging content. That, in turn, incentivises content producers to make
such content for broadcast.

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azangru
I feel that the only reason this has made the news beyond the Linux community
(there was also Business Insider [1] and The Inquirer [2] recycling this
quote) is because of how fashionable it has recently become to hate on social
media.

And while I share much of Linus's distaste for social media (although I am
shocked to see he argues against anonymity), the way that papers are now
running with this story looks like cheap sensationalism.

[1] - [https://www.businessinsider.com/linus-torvalds-says-
twitter-...](https://www.businessinsider.com/linus-torvalds-says-twitter-
facebook-instagram-a-disease-2019-4?r=US&IR=T)

[2] - [https://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/news/3073753/linus-
torv...](https://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/news/3073753/linus-torvalds-
calls-social-media-a-disease)

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officialjunk
Not that I disagree with the idea, but aren't these communication tools
highlighting or magnifying some basic human behavior traits? I would imagine
this happens on a smaller scale through face to face interaction. Is it just
the scale of it all that is the issue?

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time0ut
My opinion is that, while those traits are there, Facebook et al actively
manipulate people to express those traits. Yes, similar things happen in face
yo face interactions... with psychopaths. In this way, social media is more
like a predator than a disease.

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jjaredsimpson
This example is fresh in my mind but might be crude

Every public bathroom is a mess. Urine on seats and the floor. But I've never
gone to someone's house and seen their bathroom in that condition.

People act badly when no one is watching and they have reason to believe their
badness won't be discovered.

I'm skeptical of the value of anonymity to the collective where it's obvious
to see the value to the individual

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checksauce
One thing I find attract of anonymity is that a person can make statement
without risking it being permanently associated with him for the rest of his
life. He can test ideas, push boundaries, perhaps discover something about
himself or his previous assumptions. We are only sharing information after all

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jjaredsimpson
If most anonymous speech were like The Federalist Papers then I would agree. I
think the mean-value of anonymous speech is either zero or negative. I'm aware
this is a feeling and not something I can prove.

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saagarjha
Of course, Google+ is fine ;)

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luckylion
Google+ obviously didn't optimize for engagement, that's why nobody was using
it!

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nkozyra
In the end I don't think anyone had any idea what Google+ was supposed to be
or do, most of all Google themselves.

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thepangolino
The main issue was with Google+ was the painfully slow roll out.It killed any
chance of viral spread of it it. Same thing happened with Google Wave.

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pwinnski
Yes, the incredible slow rollout of thefacebook.com killed that one, too.

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fxbl0i
"Creator of Linux", just in case Linus Torvalds doesn't ring a bell

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pandemic_region
you can never be enough clickbaity.

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RickJWagner
I think Linus is right. It's a bit ironic, though, him calling Facebook a
'disease' when Steven Balmer famously called Linux a 'cancer'.

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mutt2016
It's a cancer. It now has its own subsystem in windows.

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fb03
Maybe it's medicine. It's being applied in an attempt to better the host's
health condition :-)

I believe we can all agree that the command line and the whole PowerShell
thing in Windows is...funny.. to say the least.

