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MC_Fap_Commander t1_iuandf2 wrote

Reply to comment by dirtynj in Nostalgic website in 90s “Geocities” style for tracking Halloween movies 📼🎃 by rgthree

That's certainly true, but the arrival of real world divisions also hurt the online space.

At that time, the internet was the tribe. Certainly some exceptions, but there was a general sense of commonality online back then. We were all still sort of the weirdos who made the place go.

As the internet became a widely used corporate mass media space, it seemed to lead to the hostility, acrimony, and division we see in the "real world." I wonder sometimes if the need for market segmentation was pushed online for purposes of creating advertising demographics.

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deathlydope t1_iuav8yn wrote

> As the internet became a widely used corporate mass media space, it seemed to lead to the hostility, acrimony, and division we see in the "real world." I wonder sometimes if the need for market segmentation was pushed online for purposes of creating advertising demographics.

Maybe, but it's just as likely an inherent side-effect of the increase in population online.

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MC_Fap_Commander t1_iuaw581 wrote

It probably makes sense. Early internet was not user friendly or cheap so I think there was a bit of a selection bias in who used it. When online access was made as easy as tapping a phone button, a very different sort of population arrived online. They brought their identity biases with them. For a lot of us in the 90's, the internet was our identity.

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BeatlesTypeBeat t1_iub97p9 wrote

No one claims to be a netizen anymore.

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