Swiping & Scrolling towards (dis)Satisfaction

Part 1 of the "A New Day For The Neighbourhood" series

Introducing “A New Day for the Neighbourhood”

It’s been a strange and instructive year to be a neighbour; let’s heed its lessons.

Good WordsMatt Civico

Swiping & Scrolling towards (dis)Satisfaction

It feels good, until it doesn't. That's my take on most social media, even most digital media. It's the ironclad law of Instagram as much as Netflix. Novelty is displaced by a vague dissatisfaction but by then the cycle is well-established, and alternatives seem implausible. The followers expect a post, probably of the not-a-brand brand, and you've come to expect the frictionless if fleeting affirmation.

Who works for whom in these digital spaces (and it is work) is difficult to parse, as followers flick, numb with boredom, and influencers parlay their personalities into side-gigs for free samples. Why do we do it, why do so many to turn to these virtual pipes to quench their thirst? Because the pipes promise water.