Its not a documentary about the harmful effects of social media. Rather, its a much detailed insight on the business models of these companies. May be, some of the outputs are unintended consequences and interestingly, the documentary interviews the people who had designed and put such systems in place first. One of the best insightful documentary on Social Media. Must watch!!
The Social Dilemma
2020
Documentary / Drama
The Social Dilemma
2020
Documentary / Drama
Plot summary
Set in the dark underbelly of Silicon Valley, The Social Dilemma fuses investigative documentary with enlightening narrative drama. Expert testimony from tech whistle-blowers exposes our disturbing predicament: the services Big Tech provides-search engines, networks, instant information, etc.-are merely the candy that lures us to bite. Once we're hooked and coming back for more, the real commodity they sell is their prowess to influence and manipulate us.
Uploaded by: FREEMAN
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Must watch!!
Is the dilemma social?
There are a lot of things, that social media can be considered to be positive. But they also enhance things that are not so good for us. A lot of things said here, should be common knowledge, still hearing them or seeing them being visualized (there are sections that are fiction or rather show a stylized version of what is happening behind the scenes) is a different beast.
Then there is also the missinformation. Will those who are most prone to be victims of these understand or rather change their behavior based on this? I would believe that they won't. They kind of can't in a way. When you are in a vicious cycle, how are you supposed to escape from the missinformation you are getting? Impossible would be the most accurate answer. Still this is spotlighting both sides and gives us an insight on how differences come about and are created ... it does not really offer solutions, though a lot of suggestions. Especially during the end credits, some advice to parents with children and how to use social media or how to educate them.
"If you're not paying for the product, then you are the product."
It shouldn't be a shock to users of social media that the platforms are manipulative, but if the idea never entered your mind, this documentary will go a long way to convince you. It actually gets scary when you hear the developers of the software and algorithms that comprise one's social media experience state that they won't even let their own families use it. That's probably a stretch because as we all know, there's potentially good and bad in just about everything, but when it comes down to the wire, it's money that makes the world go round, and the monetization of sites like Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Twitter suggest that one only exists to become a paying customer. Call me naive, but when I learned that budding programmers can immerse themselves in a course designed around Persuasive Technology, it sent a bit of a chill down my spine. In other words, there's a behavioral science that maintains as it's central tenet the ways in which these technologies can separate you from your money. There's also the very real danger of polarization whereby one is bombarded with clickbait that feeds off of prior keystrokes and web visits. It's actually a bit surprising that this film currently airs on Netflix because one would associate it with the usual suspects mentioned in the picture. After all, as soon as you finish watching this film, you automatically get suggestions on what to watch next. Come to think of it, you get 'More Like This' on every IMDb title page.