Thoughts on Blogging in the Age of Social Media

I consider myself an extremely opinionated person. I’m sure that my friends are quite tired of hearing my judgments on the latest fashion trend or pretentious indie album. This is the main reason I decided to start blogging with UIC Radio; it lends a space to process and share my views beyond a like on an Instagram post.

Probably to the horror of millennials everywhere, blogging feels vintage at this point. It belongs in a bygone era of digital cameras and flip phones, before social media was a multi-billion-dollar industry. However, much like this seemingly outdated tech, I see it making a comeback in the coming months and years.

Just in the past few months many have started to see the shortcomings of the corporate ownership of social media. From Meta unsuccessfully lobbying to ban TikTok, to the removal of fact-checking services on multiple platforms it’s apparent, now more than ever, that social media companies exist for their own profit, not to expand free speech. There’s also the issue of censorship that plagues social media today. Although my opinions on music and fashion probably aren’t controversial enough to be banned, I’d like to start getting information from sources that don’t have a history of deleting content.

In this sense, blogging offers an opportunity to share your thoughts without the limits of algorithms and censorship. It’s also comforting to know that a morally questionable billionaire won’t be profiting off the content I create (that being said, I’m not above an Instagram post here and there). 

The lead singer of one of my favorite bands, Wednesday, recently cited all these reasons and more for leaving Instagram and creating her own website. Although I certainly don’t have the skills, or fanbase, to create my own website, it was inspiring to see someone who relies on social media to connect with fans take a different path. I’m now an avid follower of her website and am searching for more artists that have done the same. 

Ideally, creating and consuming long form content like blogs will extend my increasingly flitting attention span and help me better express my opinions, hopefully meeting some like-minded people along the way. 

Maybe it’s time we stop reducing our online presence to a meme or short sentence under an Instagram post and reclaim the roots of the internet as a place to globally exchange our experiences.