Social media journalism and the frenzy of consumption

If I am not mistaken, it was 2003. One of the primary topics of conversation at the newspaper where I worked, and among journalists in general, was that printed newspapers would disappear within an estimated ten years; even if they did not end completely, they would lose their functional meaning, and journalists would deliver their news via websites.

I do not quite remember what kind of comments were being made about the future of television at the time, but a dark picture did not seem to be emerging for TVs. This was because there was neither a prediction nor a forecast that the internet, or more accurately social media, would reach such power. How could there be? Because at that time, neither smartphones nor the concept of social media existed in our lives.

A very long time has passed since 2003. The prediction that "there will be no newspapers left in ten years" did not hold true. Today, printed newspapers continue to reach readers at newsstands and some points of sale, the number of which is gradually decreasing.

I do not think there is much need to discuss circulation figures. However, it is possible to evaluate the "it will end" comment made about newspapers years ago from two perspectives. Although the physical newspaper still exists, its influence, marketability, and consumption have been lost to a significant degree.

In the past, and still today, there have been moments when we have harshly criticized printed newspaper publications due to 'differences in periodic understanding'.

There were such problematic approaches that, let alone the average reader, even the journalist's own perception was being corrupted.

From sensationalizing news to fake news, from the perspective on women to violence-related news, from media workers who carry the identity of a reporter perhaps slightly yielding to managerial pressure in terms of visual usage and destroying ethical values, there were problems in many aspects, from the language of the news to the use of photographs. And journalists were often unable to realize these problems.

However, not everything was so negative. Despite everything, I can state that there was a serious journalistic discipline.

The least talented editors working at the newspaper would put many of those defined as "senior editors" in the order we call "new media" today to shame.

They possessed the ability to write a headline worthy of respect, the ability to summarize the text they wrote independently of the headline, the ability to use visuals in the right place, the ability to write news based on an introduction, development, and conclusion flow, mastery of Turkish grammar and rules, and most importantly, perhaps the ability to place meaningful words into narrow spaces that could only fit two or three sentences.

Most importantly, qualities related to intelligence such as understanding, grasping, and development stood out.

I want to make a quick transition without dragging this out too much.

Now, unfortunately, the perception of journalism has drifted to a completely different place. Social media journalism... First, Facebook entered our lives. Facebook, which was a platform for friendship and adding friends to communicate over the internet, began to take on other meanings over time.

Processes that could each be the subject of pages of writing on their own and were associated with the media emerged.

It began to dominate the internet and news systems. Then, more social media elements than we could count were created. All of them were consumption-oriented. They began to take over our lives as if planned with a sinister mathematical genius.

In these systems where billions of dollars circulate, it was of course impossible not to think that everyone should be catered to according to their pulse.

The expectations of everyone, from those who want to watch cat videos to those who want to read news, had to be met, and the systems managed to do this without much difficulty. In fact, whatever is being done, the consumer is already doing it and feeding the system.

Each of the social media platforms began to turn into a news source.

As the structures and systems that claim to be news sources, whatever we call them, multiplied, deviations regarding reality and perception began.

These platforms, which grew stronger and attracted more interest, naturally became known for their revenue models.

The fact that social media platforms created some revenue models for more consumption also increased pollution, speed, ignorance, recklessness, and the number of people claiming to be journalists.

Intern reporters, intern editors, and social media talents (!) began "distributing" with baseless visuals and articles stolen from here and there, through accounts they opened on various platforms, partly in an effort to hold onto life.

I say "distribution" because there is no journalistic concern here. The only goal is engagement.

Then things started to get out of hand. From the foul-mouthed person who grabs a microphone to the manipulator, from the pro-government troll to the opposition-looking sycophant, everyone poured into the streets. We started watching videos containing fights, brawls, swearing, and insults with our mouths watering.

Profiles of unknown origin, whose existence is even a subject of debate, who play journalist by putting logos on videos stolen from Twitter feeds whose source, producer, and owner are known, and who have artistic photos taken and put on their profiles, have reached hundreds of thousands of followers.

Some accounts, whose management and service are unknown, began to use news stories that were brought to light with great effort as if they were their own property, comfortably and brazenly, without observing even the simplest journalistic rules.

Moreover, they often do not even cite the source. Whether it is a corporate or individual journalist, they do not direct to the original source.

The frenzy of speed and consumption has been carried to an unbelievable point in the media, as it is in everything else. People who have never once been in a real newspaper in their lives, who have never witnessed a moment when real journalists hold an editorial meeting, who have not taken any responsibility in the name of journalism and editorial work, who are unaware of Turkish, photography, framing, writing, ethics, basic rules of journalism, how to write a headline, or how to write a lead for a news story, are causing destructive damage to the profession with an understanding that destroys all journalistic criteria by disrupting perception systems through accounts with millions of followers. Of course, those who create this destructive effect are not just social media influencers. We might address them at another time.

The speed of consumption has distorted all of our perceptions and hindered production capabilities. It has directed journalists to produce meaningful and meaningless content for platforms.

Countless platforms want content every day like a fantastic machine that never gets full. Because on the other side, there is also an insatiable content-consuming audience.

These monopolizing structures and platforms also set the rules. One day they reward, another day they punish. Of course, they do not treat the user, to whom they owe their existence, like a human being; they do not even consider them an interlocutor.

They say, "Produce... Produce like crazy and make me richer, more effective, and more powerful."

And we, like crazy, produce content for Twitter, Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram, and wait for our reward.

Real journalists, journalists who defend the public and rights, of course, continue their struggle without giving up the effort of 'information transfer' and creating 'awareness' while sharing information.

There are also many people who strive to use social media as much as possible in accordance with ethical values. But the number of these people and their adherence to ethical rules are not enough to fix the polluted order.

What stands as a huge reality in the middle is that social media has taken our lives, our perceptions, our reality, and journalism hostage.