{"id":14886,"date":"2023-01-31T07:52:00","date_gmt":"2023-01-31T15:52:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/?p=14886"},"modified":"2023-02-17T01:15:21","modified_gmt":"2023-02-17T09:15:21","slug":"curated-consumption","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/2023\/01\/31\/curated-consumption\/","title":{"rendered":"Curated Consumption: A Saner Approach to Online Media"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Two years ago, I decided to get <a href=\"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/2021\/04\/19\/off-social-media\/\">off social media<\/a>.<span id='easy-footnote-1-14886' class='easy-footnote-margin-adjust'><\/span><span class='easy-footnote'><a href='https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/2023\/01\/31\/curated-consumption\/#easy-footnote-bottom-1-14886' title='I get help managing the social media accounts for this website. But I don\u2019t browse Twitter, Reddit or YouTube personally anymore.'><sup>1<\/sup><\/a><\/span> Twitter made me anxious, and Reddit and YouTube ate up all my time. Undoubtedly, it was one of the best decisions I\u2019ve made. The problems that pushed me off these platforms have only gotten worse.<\/p>\n<p>However, I\u2019m a profoundly online person. I still spend considerable time reading and watching things online. My entire livelihood is anchored on this blog that I started seventeen years ago. The prospect of spending all my downtime reading paper books by candlelight, while holding a certain romantic appeal, isn\u2019t realistic.<\/p>\n<p>The solution that works for me is to switch from letting an algorithm decide what content you consume to a curated newsfeed.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why RSS Remains the Best Technology for Online Media<\/h2>\n<div class=\"inline-podcast\">\n<small>Listen to this article<\/small><br \/>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"100%\" height=\"20\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"no\" allow=\"autoplay\" src=\"https:\/\/w.soundcloud.com\/player\/?url=https%3A\/\/api.soundcloud.com\/tracks\/1445839792&#038;color=%23219895&#038;inverse=false&#038;auto_play=false&#038;show_user=true\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p>Setting up a curated newsfeed is easy:<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Get yourself an RSS Reader. I use <a href=\"https:\/\/feedly.com\/\">Feedly<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>Add the blogs and websites that you want to follow. This includes social media accounts. RSS works for YouTube, Instagram, Twitter or old-fashioned blogs like this one.<\/li>\n<li>Read and enjoy!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Instead of an infinite stream of content designed to maximize your gut-level reactions to attention-hijacking thumbnails and rage-inducing headlines, you just read the stuff you\u2019ve subscribed to.<\/p>\n<p>Too much content? Mark it all as read and reset your feed. A seemingly interesting source turns out to be a dud? Unsubscribe. You can even create folders to separate your personal, work or other interests.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Curating is a Little More Work, But Far Saner Than the Status Quo<\/h2>\n<p>Why am I suggesting a return to 2005-era technology? Didn\u2019t the market decide that RSS was a failed technology, with Google Reader discontinuing service and companies shifting to attention-consuming algorithmic content feeds?<\/p>\n<p>As with fast food, our impulses are not always our friends when it comes to online content. The things that easily take root in our mental gardens are not generally what we intend to cultivate.<\/p>\n<p>Content curation is only slightly more work than using an algorithm. It requires you to opt into new sources manually. It also requires regular pruning to avoid having too much content. New content is somewhat harder to find (although if you follow a few aggregator blogs, like <a href=\"http:\/\/marginalrevolution.com\/\">Marginal Revolution<\/a>, this isn\u2019t so difficult.)<\/p>\n<p>What\u2019s difficult is weaning yourself off the algorithmic feeds. Modern feeds work perfectly as a <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Operant_conditioning_chamber\">Skinner box<\/a> on a variable reinforcement schedule: the content is mostly junk, but the occasional gem keeps you pecking the button for more. But if you can navigate the transition, a curated feed is a much saner way to consume online content.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>How can you keep up with all the things that interest you online, without wasting your time on all the junk?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-14886","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-personal-development","7":"entry"},"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - 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