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Spoutible: A Thread
Since the Wired article about @cbouzy , Spoutible, & the author's desire for a new Twitter that will thrill him to be recognized anew, I've been thinking about why it will be hard for traditional tech media to understand it. It has to do with White Men. Hang on.
Since the Wired article about @cbouzy , Spoutible, & the author's desire for a new Twitter that will thrill him to be recognized anew, I've been thinking about why it will be hard for traditional tech media to understand it. It has to do with White Men. Hang on.
04:55 PM - Jun 07, 2023
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Spoutible from its inception did not go to Venture Capital or investors. Instead, @cbouzy went directly to potential users to **ask what they wanted**. He crowd-sourced features. He proposed TOS & held polls. In other words, he reached out to Community. Making Community a central proposition here.
04:58 PM - Jun 07, 2023
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Community - finding your people - is not in our culture a White Male strategy, which constantly talks about a Hero's Journey, centering you as the protagonist versus the world. Nope. It is Black, it is LatinX, it is Indigenous, it is Queer, it is Female. Which means it is invisible to many WM.
05:02 PM - Jun 07, 2023
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@Cbouzy also made the **safety**of marginalized communities central to the development & mission of Spoutible. This was virtually unmentioned in the Wired article, just like the considerations of the marginalized are ignored or mocked or totally misunderstood daily by the many WM who dominate tech.
05:06 PM - Jun 07, 2023
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As it has evolved by its users, who have to create our own algorithms, Spoutible behaves more and more like an Intentional Community with a Gift Economy. It mostly runs on good will, compliments, shared good wishes, info exchange, and a "here's a pie I made, have a piece" neighborly attitude.
05:09 PM - Jun 07, 2023
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But it is no Mayberry. People will get called out by problematic behavior, our trans friends will be defended, foljs will tell wyt folks to talk less & listen more. It isn't for everybody. And it is cold water in the face of the privileged who expect to be centered & cosseted like everywhere else.
05:12 PM - Jun 07, 2023
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Spoutible is a New Place. It isn't Utopia, but it is something extraordinary that is being built: a diverse space where voices can be heard, people can learn from each other. Stories are being told. And stories are what knit us together.
05:14 PM - Jun 07, 2023
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I am deeply grateful for the people who are banding together to keep it safe, make it a large family BBQ where we don't have to sing Kumbaya together but truly thoughtless or nasty behavior will be called out or put in check. I honestly don't know if the mostly WM tech media can make sense of this.
05:18 PM - Jun 07, 2023
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It reminds me mostly of my #BuyNothing group, where daily acts of generosity among diverse neighbors power a sense of community. I look at #DailyPictureTheme before I sign off at night, marveling at lovely images people share. I dance to #SpoutingClassics . These are places hosted by WM who get it.
05:21 PM - Jun 07, 2023
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I follow classic films by @albertopastor , black films by @jforwardfilms , @blackmusicproject for deep analysis. This is a rich & artful place that mostly soothes me, despite bringing me wrenching political news. It makes me believe I can make a difference. And that matters most.
05:26 PM - Jun 07, 2023
(Edited)
11/13
And because I wrote this on the fly, I neglected to mention the AAPI communities & others that also value collective responsibility. Please forgive typos that weren't noticed til too late.
05:33 PM - Jun 07, 2023
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PS. This thread was fueled in part by the deep dive @ryan made into analyzing the Wired article & noting what % of the text was devoted to which topics. It made it very clear what WASN'T being noticed or covered.
05:47 PM - Jun 07, 2023
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PPS I am also indebted to Dr Laura Lawrie @canyonsfan for her long, erudite, & fascinating thread about social media.
05:58 PM - Jun 07, 2023
In response to Linda Eisenstein.
You have put into words a sense I’ve had abt Spoutible. It’s very refreshing to be part of a community where people are sharing and listening to each other. The contrast with other social media with their top-down approach of ‘we know what is important and best for you’ is striking.
08:03 PM - Aug 06, 2023
In response to Linda Eisenstein.
Great thread. As an old, cishet white guy myself, I don't post on here too much because I'm too busy listening and amplifying/echoing the good stuff.
06:52 PM - Jun 08, 2023
In response to Linda Eisenstein.
I'm with you as long as I understand the term "White Men" to apply to persons of whatever gender, colour or nationality who exhibit the described assumptions about how social media -- and by extension everything else -- should work.
07:22 AM - Jun 08, 2023
In response to Sarah Daniel.
It is a useful rubric for a set of values established in patriarchy.
09:56 AM - Jun 08, 2023
In response to Linda Eisenstein.
Thanks for this thread… it makes so much sense that we are trying to evolve out of a tech and media model formed by cis-het male values. No wonder it feels better over here ❤️I couldn’t t have articulated what you said so well but I feel it and I appreciate it !
11:52 PM - Jun 07, 2023
In response Evolve Undefined to their Spout
Thanks! It really does lead to a different model.
12:06 AM - Jun 08, 2023
In response to Linda Eisenstein.
Excellent thread. I wasn't so helpful or gracious.
10:34 PM - Jun 07, 2023
In response to Linda Eisenstein.
Great thread! Thank you for saying stuff that needs to be said out loud! 😉 👏🏾
10:28 PM - Jun 07, 2023
In response to Linda Eisenstein.
Yesterday I likened this space to a cocktail party, but I'm down for a family BBQ too!! Great thread.
09:28 PM - Jun 07, 2023
In response to Jose Gonzalez.
Thanks! Definitely BBQ, there is more pie here. And fake arguments about where raisins belong.
10:20 PM - Jun 07, 2023
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In response to Linda Eisenstein.
Jim_Anderson is correct @LindaEisenstein This would be a perfect letter to the editor at Wired. I wouldn’t expect there to be a change n how they viewed the world, but if there are female employees I’m pretty sure they would applaud.
08:09 PM - Jun 07, 2023
In response to Linda Eisenstein.
Thank you for this thoughtful, inspiring, insightful post. You encapsulated all that Spoutible means to us and what it can grow up to be - a truly safe space of community. Your “on the fly” is perfect.💚
05:50 PM - Jun 07, 2023
In response to Linda Eisenstein.
well said. our little corner of the internet is a hell of a lot of fun. it's no wonder to those of us that have embraced this community to believe in its possibility and promise.
05:44 PM - Jun 07, 2023