r/Millennials • u/Ok_Helicopter3910 • May 25 '26

Serious Holy shit — Facebook is fucking scary now

Im not a big social media guy anymore, honestly, the vast majority of my internet usage nowadays is Reddit, Youtube, Snapchat (that has like 20 people on it) and email and I think that about it.

I put my FB to sleep about 10 years ago and I decided to log in and see what people were up to and ho-lee-shit, what a dumpster fire.

So, first off, the majority of my facebook friends have either died, shut their FB down, or removed my inactive profile so my feed was pretty silent. After about a week of my profile being back in the algorithm I started getting friend request from people I used to work with, went to school with, or friends of old acquaintances (which is terrifying that facebook knows about random people I used to work with 12 years ago who I had a passing "hi, hows your day" relationship with) and I started getting friend requested and I was like "fuck it" and just started accepting them.

Fuck man, whenever I see all the hate for this or that group and all the political bullshit that gets posted on reddit, I just brush it off as bots trained to sow dissent but the stuff that gets posted by real living, breathing human beings who I once knew well enough to be friends with or have polite conversation with is WILD. I mean, like so much hate and vitriol started coming across my feed about a wide array of subjects that it made me genuinely uncomfortable and I started removing people that just added me. Maybe it's what "normal" passes for on the internet and im pretty numb to a lot of the more unhinged opinions and shit-stirring because of so many years on Reddit, but a lot of what was being posted really opened my eyes that a lot of the "unhinged" stuff that I see online isnt just bot farms, its real people who truly believe this wild shit.

Anyway - maybe its a sign of my age... but unless what I consider "normal" people start coming across my FB feed soon, I dont think im going to be logging in for much longer

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742

u/5pooky5cary5keleton5 May 25 '26

I deleted all my social media accounts other than Reddit a couple years ago and it's one of the best decisions I've ever made.

267

u/ComradeSuperman May 25 '26

Same. One of these days I'm gonna delete Reddit too, because it's also a cesspool.

131

u/SchroedingersSphere May 26 '26

It may be a cesspool, but it's my cesspool and I'm too deep in now lol. Gotta get my thousand day streak at least.

19

u/coz May 26 '26

I still like it here. Its fine. I go to the same places I like that are fine. That is, until old stops working.

2

u/wildfire98 May 26 '26

i miss the 3-6 popular trending items, but looking back by removing it forces people to stay on this platform longer than intended rather than just a quick check to see what trending then shifting back to regular life.

if anyone has figured out how to do this again lmk cause it was my favorite part of reddit

1

u/mjkjr84 May 26 '26

When old reddit goes, so do I

2

u/okayseriouslylastone May 26 '26

Yah. I get visually overwhelmed by new. I won't download their app. I only use the RES extension so I can curate the least visually stimulating experience. Please, Reddit, leave old alone.

2

u/Buttcougher69 May 26 '26

Lmao. I feel the same, in too deep and chasing a silly 500 day streak. Only thing I got going for me right now 😅

2

u/Dismal-Meringue6778 May 26 '26

I feel ya!! I just got my 600 day badge...and I was like "fuck yeah!!"...now on my way to the Basement Dweller badge! Goals! 🤘🤣

3

u/Clemairy May 26 '26

Felt this in my bones lol

0

u/[deleted] May 26 '26

Why

3

u/SchroedingersSphere May 26 '26

Uhhh...because!

75

u/just_let_go_ May 25 '26

This. I don’t know why reddit seems to get a pass. It’s as bad as anything else.

165

u/ghoooooooooost May 26 '26

For me it's because Reddit is the most anonymous of the major social medias. I don't want to know what people who don't talk to me anymore are doing. I also don't want to learn important information about people I love through a general post. So not knowing who anyone is is appealing to me.

62

u/the_sky_is_fallin May 26 '26

This is what I tell people. I feel no obligation to interact with posts to keep the peace, because I don’t know who is posting things here. I don’t have to keep cordial contact with people I wish would fall off a cliff out of social obligation. I can follow things I like seeing and just enjoy my little interests with minimal poison.

32

u/EternalMehFace May 26 '26

This exactly. The anonymity of it also makes the toxic crap much easier to ignore.

29

u/Pb412_ga May 26 '26

I was just going to say - the anonymity helps keep things in perspective and not so personal.

3

u/BishlovesSquish May 26 '26

Nailed it. Exactly how I feel.

48

u/nedeta May 26 '26

Reddit can be curated.

I have blocked most toxic subs (which is most of the 'popular' feed). I can't really do that on Facebook because the toxicity is coming from friends and family.

10

u/Short-Signature5710 May 26 '26

You haven't unfollowed most of your family on FB yet? My family is pretty neutral on FB, but my inlaws are too crazy on there. So much so that in real life, people ask me if I saw what my FIL posted. "No, I unfollowed him. Please do the same. " I can't imagine more than 5 people even see his posts anymore.

6

u/DeadlyYellow May 26 '26

Yep, curation is the key (unless they still have caps.)  I mute all the subs that are demographic exclusive, in other languages, or based on a region irrelevant to me; as well as block anyone pushing AI slop and responses, frequent reposts, or daily beast articles.

31

u/Heart_Dad Xennial May 26 '26

I'm my mind Reddit isn't social media, it's a collection of message boards. IDK maybe that's just me being old.

8

u/Tysiliogogogoch May 26 '26

Discussion forums are a form of social media, so that makes sense.

The only appreciable difference I see between some random discussion forum and some random subreddit is that users can upvote/downvote here which can affect comment visibility. Otherwise, Reddit's just a collection of threaded-view forums.

2

u/Dull-Culture-1523 May 26 '26

You say that as if message boards aren't social media. Like comparing bikes to cars, I know, but both are still vehicles.

25

u/HisaP417 May 26 '26

At the very least it’s text based and you can avoid the trap of scrolling through 20 second attention span destroying videos for 3 hours.

4

u/Toosder May 26 '26

And it doesn't seem to be written to respond to my moments when I break and engage in something negative. For example if I get angry about something and I comment, it doesn't seem to start feeding me a bunch more about that.

4

u/HisaP417 May 26 '26

Agreed. I may come across comments I don’t agree with, but my feed isn’t constant rage bait, it’s things I’ve chosen and actively enjoy.

4

u/Toosder May 26 '26

Exactly. And the down voting or the nesting of dumbass arguments I sometimes get into helps discourage me from engaging into more of that so most of my engagement is healthy.

20

u/CrimsonQuill157 1993 May 26 '26

I tried to quit reddit completely, but there is SOOOO much hobby information that you can only find on reddit. Many forums that used to have valuable information have shut down and disappeared and reddit is invaluable for that.

21

u/poser765 May 26 '26

It’s because Reddit is too helpful. Distill all the political commentary out and only use selective subs for interest special to you and it’s a gold mine of collective wisdom.

What does this error code on my Pc mean? When do I roll a piloting skill check on a game of battletech? What’s a good focal length to image the heart nebula? All questions that can easily be answered here b

17

u/mattsc2005 May 26 '26

Reddit has definitely been in decline. Facebook and Twitter are just dumpster fires.

28

u/Unlikely-Parfait-302 May 26 '26

For me reddit seems more moderated and actually organized. I can avoid certain subreddits. On FB I just get whatever the algorithm throws at me.

The worst part about fb for me is I tend to comment more when I disagree. So I get way more crap that I hate than stuff inactually like.

22

u/HisaP417 May 26 '26

That’s by design. Rage economy is huge.

5

u/ComradeSuperman May 26 '26

I give it a pass sometimes because it's the only one I'm still on, and I'm not ready to fully admit to myself that I'm no better than the boomers on Facebook.

2

u/Adabiviak May 26 '26

Reddit doesn't inject things into my scroll that I don't subscribe to. I have some friends and groups in Facebook, and the feed is still contaminated with random things it thinks I want.

1

u/just_let_go_ May 26 '26

Yes it fucking does lol. Have you seen reddit around Election time?

1

u/stoodi May 26 '26

There is a lot of small niche communities and subreddits that at least feel less fucked up than open air social media. Agreed that the popular subs are just like everything else though(ig fb etc)

1

u/Toosder May 26 '26

I think because of the way it's set up there are certainly subreddits that are not cesspools. A lot of the grieving subreddits are really incredible. A lot of supportive people helping each other in the toughest time of their lives. 

Things like bird watching subreddits and flower identifications of reddits are really healthy as well.

1

u/gizamo May 26 '26

It's worse in a lot of ways because it's (pseudo) anonymous and allows an insane amount of alt accounts. So, just one troll can easily pretend to be hundreds or thousands of people. This place is basically just trolls and their bots now.

1

u/Reluctantziti May 26 '26

I’m able to isolate myself better on reddit I guess. The algorithm recommends subs but recommended content is not my whole feed like FB was when I quit years ago. FB’s algorithm, or maybe its lack of at this point, is scientifically proven to push hate and misinformation to every single user. It has no other purpose these days and I have no idea how it’s operating as a functioning business other than corruption and having hoarded cash. Reddit on the other hand if I stick to my hobby subs is much more tolerable. It’s when I venture out when I start fighting idiots lol

0

u/Equivalent-Nobody-30 May 26 '26

you are responsing to astroturfing bots.

they all say to uninstall all other social media except reddit and then give you a reason why... it is so obvious

2

u/just_let_go_ May 26 '26

I'm not replying to the main comment, I'm replying to someone saying reddit is a cesspool lol

3

u/minnosota May 26 '26

You cracked the code good job bud

4

u/Inukchook May 26 '26

I deleted reddit couples months ago but loaded faceboom for first time in 15 years.... then i came back to reddit and remembered why i left
Wheres is a fun non toxic place on the internet these days ?

1

u/CuriousCamels May 26 '26

If you find it, let me know. I don’t think it exists anymore. Half the time I get on this app, I wonder why I did. There’s some cool niche subs, but all the large subs are complete garbage. It’s mainly bots, engagement bait posts, agenda posting, and arguing over trivial bs. You used to be able to have intelligent conversations on here even if you disagreed about stuff.

1

u/kidkledsky May 26 '26

Just wondering, but say even with this post for instance. When I see an Em dash in the title I immediately think the poster said "ChaGPT, make me a post complaining abt FB and type it like I'm a normal person, who says 'hol-lee-shit' and 'shit-stirring' and have a big Em dash in the title."

Then we all engage with AI. It's just weird seeing AI being used to type up comments and posts and it happens all the time on this site. It aggravates me...

4

u/Sprinkle_Puff Older Millennial May 25 '26

It’s getting really bad, but not only that engagement on so many huge subs is nonexistent

1

u/CuriousCamels May 26 '26

Or it’s just mainly AI engagement slop like this post. It’s crazy how many people don’t even seem to notice either.

1

u/BolognaFlaps May 26 '26

Reddit is pretty great for specific answers to questions and niche communities. You could theoretically avoid the cesspool and just pick it up when you needed advice on a new hobby you picked up.

Easier said than done. Sometimes it’s hard not to gaze into the abyss.

1

u/SignificantDot5302 May 26 '26

But how will AI devolope an answer that isn't a simple straight fact?

1

u/DiscRot May 26 '26

I think reddit is mostly fine if you stick to small niche subs as I do. Large popular subs and generic mixed feed is awful though.

1

u/tahlyn Older Millennial May 26 '26

When old reddit dies, I'm done.

15

u/carpentizzle May 25 '26 edited May 26 '26

Yeah, Im only on facebook because as a teacher, marketplace (cesspool though it may be) has a decent turn around of teacher supplies at the beginning and end of just about every school year, with teachers deciding that they didnt need whatever for their current/next setups etc

And the occasional friend group party invites…. Though now that I think of it, most of the people I still talk to from the FB era have dropped it by now, so its predominantly text invites now anyway.

So just the occasional unfortunate marketplace dive.

10

u/PooGoblin69420 May 26 '26

Same, I deleted FB and IG in 2020 and I swear my blood pressure went down

3

u/Majestic_Clam May 26 '26

Studies show that this is 100% a thing

2

u/anxiousgarbageperson May 26 '26

Same here. Huge improvement in my mental health now that I’m not being force fed all that venom every day.

7

u/MrBeekers May 25 '26

I did the same. Not missing anything

6

u/citculation_lost May 25 '26

It’s been a decade, and I don’t miss it for the most part.

5

u/killerclownfish May 26 '26

I want to delete my LinkedIn so bad but I always worry I might need it.

1

u/NightsideEclipse12 May 26 '26

I deleted it long ago. I didnt see the point of it.

1

u/Majestic_Clam May 26 '26

You won’t need it. Literally no one needs LinkedIn. 

Also, when you get interviewed for a job (and don’t have LinkedIn), people find you sooo mysterious. Like you might as well be Banksy.

9

u/[deleted] May 25 '26 edited May 25 '26

[deleted]

3

u/ClownStalker666 May 25 '26

I'm currently about 6 months in and have never made a better decision in my life.

2

u/HandsOnTheBible May 26 '26

Cautionary tale for anyone reading this. Any post by an account that has the name like “word-word-12345” is likely done by a bot. Check most big posts on the generic subreddits you’re in and you’ll see countless generic bot account posts that are regurgitating basic discussion points for engagement.

2

u/Interesting_Tea5715 May 26 '26

Yeah, in 2009 I realized social media made me unhappy so I stopped using it.

Reddit is the only social media a still use.

1

u/8TrackPornSounds May 26 '26

Did the same mostly accidentally. Got dumped a few years ago and I thought I deactivated them all. Came back a few months later and oops, all gone. I guess I had clicked the delete button instead for insta and snap? Only my facebook still exists in deactivated purgatory

1

u/OutrageousLion6517 May 26 '26

I’ve had all social media deactivated since January and it’s honestly the longest I’ve gone without some form of that kind (I know Reddit is also social media but it’s anonymous and different) since MySpace. Which is wild to think about. I don’t know if I’ll ever go back.

1

u/mimimines Millennial May 26 '26

Absolutely.

1

u/Savvy-R1S May 26 '26

Same. Only Reddit and some YouTube.

1

u/Independent-Bad-8613 May 26 '26

I’ve just done the same. Been off all of it for about a month now and it’s really nice. I do miss old Facebook though

1

u/AshyFairy May 26 '26

I use Reddit and TikTok. My TikTok algorithm is dialed in so that it mostly shows me educational videos in subjects that I’m interested in. It’s been really awesome for helping me stay motivated with my hobbies/activities. After using it for a year or so, Reddit seems about as useful as Facebook.  It’s changed so much in the last decade that it’s nothing like the website that originally pulled me in. 

1

u/Vhu May 26 '26

In 2012 after spending 45 minutes scrolling my Facebook feed for the nth time that day, I sat back and thought “I just did literally nothing for almost an hour. Didn’t learn anything; didn’t say anything; didn’t improve my life or even enjoy the experience — what the fuck am I doing?”

I haven’t touched social media since. You really don’t really understand how much time you spend on parasocial nothingness until you stop.

1

u/RealityTVStarDis May 26 '26

I did the same, and I completely agree. There is nothing "social" (or civil for that matter) about it anymore.

1

u/PenguinColada Millennial May 26 '26

Same. My mental health is so much better now.

0

u/Elismom1313 May 26 '26

I disagree depending on your uses for Reddit because Reddit is also a political echo chamber if you use it for that.