@taylorlorenz You get to keep a sane distance from Satan’s merchants on earth for one thing

@taylorlorenz I usually start by explaining the chronological feed with no publicity; then, that it's not a platform, but a software run in many different places, so there is no one owner; then, I circle back to the fact that there are no algorithms choosing what you see on your feed.
I have the feeling I'm not persuasive enough, so I would love to hear other strategies.

@taylorlorenz Profit isn't a motivating factor. Admins create and maintain instances because they want them to exist and other people to benefit from their existence.

@taylorlorenz

I get why they call it a "decentralized network" but that description was kind of a turn off for me before I came here because I thought you were trapped in a little server with a few dozen people and what's the point of that?

The power is decentralized but the communication need not be. You can talk to anyone from any community. You can have all of those fun instances of cross pollination when different communities intersect.

The more the fedi grows the better this gets.

@taylorlorenz

There are no ads.
There are no bots*
There is no secret algorithm controlled by strange billionaires and/or creeps trying to push agendas**
It's really fun and interactive and you meet great people, real individual people.

*Ya'll are such nerds you are going to bring up the good bots that we made and like, but you know exactly what I mean by this.
**ant propaganda doesn't count I'm not that rich either

@taylorlorenz Freedom. Free from algorithms. Free from the whims of an owner. It's people connecting as they see fit.

@taylorlorenz I see a lot of good responses. One contextual element is who is asking, and I think there are good answers that fit more for organizations. You can build a media platform that no one can take away from you. If you share a link to your post, no one will see a login wall. If i were an org, news outlet, or something like a very socially engaged regional music collective, i think the robust control of your platform actually means something important.

@taylorlorenz Because independent app developers can add features to decentralized social networking that vastly enhance the experience. Both the ability to follow hashtags and timed mutes are absolutely genius and are the reason I'm not on Bluesky. What new, totally kicksss things are going to be created for the Fediverse next week?

@taylorlorenz

IMO the 'free speech' trope has been used to flood billionaires' platforms w hate speech & AI-generated deepfake porn that isn't tolerated on my Fediverse server

I'm here less for freedom TO spew whatever I want & more for freedom FROM algorithms, ads, & someone's profit motive determining what I see. I'm here for Solidarity & Movement Building & learning from people all over the world like @pluralistic & @popcornreel & @StillRise1967

Also for #CatsOfMastodon & #HashtagGames 🙆🏻‍♀️

@taylorlorenz No corporate overlord mining your data and then using it to dictate what's in your feed.

@taylorlorenz I own my social media feed and my community. It feels like a local pub with friends where I share rumours and stories. Not attention seeking circus club.

@taylorlorenz It’s a more authentic experience on here, they monitor bots and eradicate them, troll like replies trying to influence, steer your original post with a negative connotation just don’t happen. It’s less commercialised. A chair, chat and cup of tea, kinder experience.

@taylorlorenz
Facebook has for years blocked links to my own blog, and now to news websites. Mastodon doesn't do that, and you can also keep your content, so Meta can't delete it all including your photos and friend connections.

@taylorlorenz On the old centralized platforms, everyone's in the same building with the same landlord, if the landlord is shitty (of course they are) everyone suffers. On decentralized media, there are tons of buildings with different landlords, and you can even build your own house. If your landlord sucks, you move.

@taylorlorenz The most important part for me is that this is not yet another "cloud app" where one entity controls everything: your account, what you see, the client applications, etc., but a protocol, where you can use whatever compatible software you want, even multiple.

It makes feature rollout difficult, but it's a massive safety feature in my opinion. If Mastodon gGmbH did something highly unpopular, all this software can feasibly choose to ignore it. They *cannot* force it on everyone.

@taylorlorenz I like Jefferson’s phrasing: “it neither picks my pocket nor breaks my arm” Technology that is not working actively to harm me and my loved ones is very appealing to me.

@taylorlorenz as a platform it is not and can never be adversarial or extractive to you as a user, the way twitter, Facebook, instagram, TikTok and others are or will be.

@taylorlorenz

A lot of people complained when Instagram first switched from a chronological feed to an algorithmic one.

But I think the way forward for the fediverse is communities moving here wholesale like the forkiverse server did.

I don't think people will make accounts here otherwise unless they're the kind of nerd who's interested in this (in which case selling it is easy) or they have network effects which take a long time to build up.

@taylorlorenz Imagine a world without politicians, billionaires and bosses running everything, abusing everyone.
No ads and no algorithm.
Add a high signal to noise ratio.
On arrivsl you can move into the neighborhood you like best, and pay the rent you can.
Now take that world online, make it a social network, better, a social community.
You get Mastodon

@taylorlorenz It's the only social where you aren't the product. You aren't being force-fed content to promote someone else's interests.

@taylorlorenz @stux It’s kind.

@taylorlorenz
Non-profit, no algorithm, no ads. Decentralized means that you control how and where (mobility) you interact with the network, and there is not a single point of failure as there is within centralized social media.

@taylorlorenz “your words”. Not “your words as long as they conform to this week’s ketamine fuelled fetished cravings of the owning billionaires”

@taylorlorenz Let me give this a try from a non-admin perspective.. 🤔

The Fediverse is a place on the internet where you can still meet interesting people from all over the world. Instead of uploading your contacts and following the same people over and over, on the Fediverse you discover new interests, info, help and support and everything you need in a HUMAN social network!

Sorry if it's a little long but im sure you can make something out of it! 💕

@taylorlorenz I just think it's great that you can get together with a few of your friends and run a Mastodon server for a few bucks a month.

Together, you are an independent entity, you set your own rules, but you are also part of something bigger, you can connect with many communities and individuals that the fediverse is made up of.

And that is pretty neat.

@taylorlorenz Not beholden to one person’s ownership, as in there’s no Elon who’s going to take over and change the whole Fediverse, or even Mastodon

Chronological timeline.

You drive the algorithm instead of it driving you

@taylorlorenz

It's organized at its root level around what I want to see. That's the part nobody seems to get.

@taylorlorenz

don't appeal to high mindedness

sell it

- no ads

- choose a server that fits your style, no one-size-fits-all straightjacket

- zero privacy defilement

- immunity to some racist edgelord techbro coming in, buying the thing, and turning it into bigot and ignorance paradise

@taylorlorenz
What each user sees on the Fediverse is up to them. No billionaire can force their views into your feed, because your feed is opt-in. Likewise, they can't stop you from seeing what you want to see. If your instance blocks things you want to see, you can switch to another instance; there are many.

@taylorlorenz Because people here have to put energy into interacting with each other. And that makes us happy.

@taylorlorenz For me it's simple: people are nicer, people are smarter. IDK why, maybe 'cuz there's no algorithm amplifying the most outrageous hot takes, and no billionaire owners shoving their agenda down our throats. IMHO "free expression" means different things to different people. You can spout Nazi garbage on Mastodon if you want, but you probably won't get a wide audience. But if you have a reasonable comment to contribute to a conversation, there's a good chance you'll get heard here.

@taylorlorenz Free edit button 😊 https://bne.social/@phocks/113852656164872270

@taylorlorenz You can meaningfully have a say in content moderation policies.

Reporting bad actors usually leads to a more pro-social outcome.

I think there are many but that feels important.

@taylorlorenz Curious what finally won you over?

For me, it was an opportunity to reboot my relationship with social media in general, approaching it fresh, but having nearly 20 years of knowledge about all the ways it can go wrong.

I don't talk about decentralization. I just focus on my feed showing me only what I choose to follow, and enjoying the interesting people I've met here since 2022.

@taylorlorenz

Do you trust big tech controlled apps then let them divide into their respective camps

@taylorlorenz It comes down to what social behaviors are rewarded. On centralized platforms, we’re seeing algorithm changes that push people you’ve never met, products you don’t need, and news you can’t do anything about over the actual people in your lives, because that keeps eyes on screens, and on ads, and that makes revenue. In a decentralized environment, individual communities without profit incentive just focus on building welcoming spaces, the true goal of social media

@taylorlorenz No ads. I think that's a highly convincing argument for many people & it's directly tied to decentralization: The fediverse is basically social media before algorithms & thanks to decentralization, if anyone wanted to add any kind of algorithmic reach functionality, everyone else would be free to ignore it - and without an algo, there's no business case for advertising in the 'verse.