The problem with political influence campaigns on social media (paid or not) goes away on decentralized networks without ads or algos. They can't do anything to get your attention. You're fully in control. Unless they tag you but that should be treated like spam.
And for this reason, nobody who wants to manipulate you (now or maybe in the future) promotes the fedi. See candidates, advocacy organizations, marketers and very wealthy people who are now bored and want power.
New on my events watch list: π€ PublicSpaces Conference, Jun 04, 2026
6th edition of the PublicSpaces Conference: the impact of technology on our democracy. Our space for our own voices turned into geopolitical power play by big tech, driven by algorithms. Let's reclaim (online) public spaces.<br><a href="https://conference.publicspaces.net/en">https://conference.publicspaces.net/en</a> #DPG #SocialWeb
@applepine yes. I held this poll a couple days ago, with delightful results on the social experience of the current #fediverse: Dispersed cozy villages with here and there a bustling city..
https://social.coop/@smallcircles/116154415408228188
That is a great outcome, and something to cherish and protect.
Currently I feel the slow growth of the #ActivityPub fediverse is healthy and natural growth we can cope with. And #Bluesky being the lightning rod for corporate attention, borrows more time to mature and evolve.
The #SocialWeb dynamics will totally change if the technology adoption lifecycle gets beyond early adopter phase, and 1,000's of commercial vendors start to launch products in this new market space that we, pioneers, made available to them.
The question is whether we can handle that. I think currently we cannot and we have to hand over fedi's fate to the market and hope for the best.
unless we do something about it, infinite options thanks to the internet always leads to one gateway service. open protocols alone will not save us. they are required but not sufficient. the interface and search must live in FOSS apps that remain competitive. attention must be democratized. fiat transfer must be federated and simple.
RE: https://social.publicspaces.net/@publicspaces/116216759839655883
Happy to share the good news of another @publicspaces conference happening this year!
Join us on June 4, 5 and 6th in Amsterdam.
Looking forward to work on this once again π
#Tech #Fediverse #BigTech #TechPolicy #PublicSpaces #PubConf2026 #OpenSource #Ethics #AI #ATProto #SocialMedia #Democracy #SocialWeb #EU #NL #Conference
The Three Attention Eras
mass media meant cultural dominance by people who could own a big outlet or pay them for ads.
algo media means the rise of content (and their creators) that appeals to our lizard brain for long enough for the algo to know and then push similar stuff at us and people with similar demographics, as tweaked by the platform owners.
social media could mean the public decides together what goes viral via boosts (if we can get everyone on fedi)
New on my events watch list: FediForum, Apr 28, 2026
online global FediForum unconference,to discuss, teach and learn, and move the Open Social Web forward <a href="https://fediforum.org/2026-04/">https://fediforum.org/2026-04/</a> #fediverse #socialweb
Our co-founder @michael represented the Newsmast Foundation last week at Rebuild, an event bringing together 60 European social platforms to take back control of social media.
There's a lot of work to do, but we're so proud to be part of a long overdue European movement calling for commitment to European social platforms.
You can see and sign the letter here: https://letter.rebuild.net/
You know, @periwinkle.social@bsky.brid.gy is the StatusNet of the #ATmosphere network. StatusNet (2008) was the first managed hosting (free & paid) for the #Fediverse network (then called Identiverse). #OpenSocial #SocialWeb
I mean he's right but can't people see how this will keep people from using fedi? my congressman Casten is probably the most prolific user of fedi in the US government.
As you know I am proponent to emphasize the social aspects more, to drive healthy evolution of the #SocialWeb.
The app-centric #fediverse is a pure technosphere, where a tech-first approach deals with getting app features to the next app, and the #ActivityPub protocol matures via post-facto 'follow-the-leader' #interoperability. What happens in the sociosphere between people using the tech is de-facto of secondary concern, and apps are tweaked to try to deal with externalities. The resulting social landscape has become one of neighboring app kingdoms with guarded borders separating them. Everyone speaks microblog to each other, albeit with thick accents, hard to understand. The fediverse is social *because* of the people, and despite of the tech, that still severely restrains them.
It would be nice if the track name not just indicated a technology name. E.g. https://coding.social uses:
- Fediverse, a peopleverse
- #ReimagineSocial
- #SocialNetworkingReimagined
I'm thinking of proposing a #fediverse/social web community track at @COSCUP 2026 (Aug 8β9, Taipei)βthink FOSDEM's Social Web devroom, but in East Asia. Before I submit the CFP, I'd love to get a sense of what to call it. What do you think?
(Boosts appreciated!)
Your Website Could Be Your Social Media Account
Breitbart said "politics is downstream from culture".
Maybe today we should say "civics is downstream from attention". That's the power of Trump and his media CEO sycophants. He says and does crazy shit and they make sure most people are bombarded by coverage of it. They both get paid.
The only way out is media decentralization and the wide embrace and collective control over what goes viral on social media.
One's ratio of boosts to posts is a good proxy for their character.
3 Whole Years here on the Social Web!!!
To celebrate, a fun little blog looking at what's happened in that time π
https://forbetter.ghost.io/three-years-at-the-newsmast-foundation-and-on-the-social-web/
#europa #socialweb #kopenhagen #rebuild2026
Da tut sich was auf den digitalen Markt Europa. π€
https://www.zeit.de/digital/internet/2026-03/soziale-netzwerke-europa-rebuild-initiative-margrethe-vestager?freebie=0ca214cc
How could the organisations you support do a better job of supporting you?
We've noticed that far too many organisations don't put their community first. It's time to make a change.
#CommunityBuilding #SocialWeb #Question #Boost #Fediverse #BeBetter
"The open social web today consists primarily of two protocols, ActivityPub and ATProto, each with very different ideas about how to organize social life online."
@laurenshof@connectedplaces.online
https://connectedplaces.online/where-does-community-live/
I would say 3; Matrix is also a social web protocol. What you say about these 2 protocols in the rest of the paragraph applies just as much to Matrix;
(1/2)
