Why Living In A Bubble Isn't As Bad As You Might Think
I might live inside a watery, soapy sphere but it's not the same as living in the dark. Here's why.
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Algorithms are all fun and dandy until they realise that you might sometimes read bad news about your community, or want to know more about how the Government thinks you’re a pest or a stick insect to society (long, sometimes invisible but always shrieked at when they realise what you actually are.)
My data and reading habits on X (formerly known as the place to catch up on news from the cast of Glee) has become a morose tableau of trans related discussions and breaking news about who’s starring in the next Yorgos Lanthimos film - providing highs and lows that are unsustainable for the human brain. Over time, not only is the news we read about our own communities constant, it’s overwhelming. When I looked to the right at the trending topics I realised they were all about LGBTQ+ specific ‘moments’ from the day. It read:
#IStandWithDavidTennant
RuPaul
The Bookseller
James O’Brien
Chappell
#TransRightsAreHumanRights
Safe to say that if I was struck by a bus and the paramedics needed to know if I was a faggot, they’d be able to work it out by my algorithm alone and not just because at the time of the incident I was practicing my HOT TO GO choreography.
Aside from my imaginary death, it got me thinking about the impact of living in an echo chamber. About what it’s really like, when you take into consideration the films that you watch, the people you speak to, the coffee you drink, the duvet covers you buy - everything is intrinsically influenced by the bubble that we live in. I don’t use bubble as a bad word, rather merely as an observation of how we curate our worlds, as well as have them curated for us. It’s kind of like the chicken and the egg.
What comes first? Are the decisions we make inherently our own, or are they consistently influenced and encourage by the bubble we live in?
For example, when I first started this Substack space, I had a fresh slate. An algorithm that was untouched, and malleable. That first follow or the first re-stack on the notes space would send a signal to this new platform about who I was, what I want to see more of and fundamentally, how to create this new bubble. The pressure was immense. I decided that this would be my funny, silly yet professional space so obviously had to follow Stevie Martin’s Substack ‘The S is a 5’ first to let Substack know that I was a good time gal with a penchant for line drawings and jokes. It was a strong start.
Now, after my first full week within these new orange walls, I feel a sense of smugness in relation to my other apps and their tired, worn out conversations. Their algorithms have provided me with years of news, jargon, misinformation and stupidity as well as countless infatuations with male actors that turned out to be gay (a big turn off for me.)
This platform was allowing me to curate a new type of enjoyment - a more high brow one if you will.
Until earlier in the week, I saw an article from The Bookseller reporting on a new publishing network for those ‘concerned about gender ideology’. A secret, anonymous group of authors, agents and publishing staff had been born, and their home?
Substack.
I know that 5 years ago I would’ve got on my high horse about Substack themselves allowing this group to use their space to engage in such anti-trans discussions. I can only imagine what they’re saying, but it’s probably something about how trans people have an advantage over ‘real women’ when it comes to writing books because their fingers are longer or how non-binary people have racked up more experience staring at a laptop screen all day because we disproportionately played The Sims as children, so it’s easier for us to write a book. Whatever it may be, I know a previous version of me would’ve been angry.
But as I sit in my newly formed bubble, I paused for a second. Sure I felt disappointed that there were people who shared transphobic narratives on my shiny new Substack space, but I have a choice as to whether or not I engage with their content. We always have a choice. Much like in the physical world when I speak with someone and they suddenly let me know that they enjoy eating Pepperami’s or decide to answer a phone call and put it on speaker phone despite us being in a coffee shop, I know that perhaps they’re not the person for me. In both digital and IRL scenario’s, it’s ok to walk away and not have to take sole responsibility for changing that persons mind.
It is possible as marginalised people to see content that we don’t want to engage with, wave at it, and float away. That’s why bubbles are see through, because they allow us to see everything around us with the protection of a permeable barrier. It acts as a means of protection, but importantly not as a black out blind to the world. Disagreeing with people is ok, and arguably is one of the healthiest things we can learn to do, because it fortifies our own personal principles in the process. As we realise what we don’t like, the see-saw of desire shows us with clarity what we do like.
Of course balance is important, and my time on X over the past 11 years has created a space that is deeply off kilter. Anti-trans rhetoric, news of discrimination and LGBTQ+ violence is rife, and although good to be able to see through the clear walls of my bubble, its force and potency has broken through, becoming an unwelcome weight in the process.
So as I build a new space on Substack, and engage with new types of writers, educators, comedians and Gleeks (they always end up in the bubble somehow), it’s nice to reflect on a new sense of maturity and confidence in my approach to those who spread misinformation and hate. I believe free speech and diversity of thought is a deeply important principle in our modern world. I also know that I don’t need to hear or engage with what everybody has to say if I don’t want to. That’s called freedom of choice. The walls of the bubble might be thin, but they are there for a reason - if I want something to be blocked from entering, I can do so in a way that still respects people's right to speak whilst respecting my own energy.
Even if it’s nonsense.
It’s a hard pill to swallow, but an important one to digest. To know that there are ways to see other peoples worlds and learn from them, whilst too ensuring we protect ourselves from the words and thoughts of those that don’t align with our way of life. In an ideal world yes, we might want to shut them down and ban them from our spaces. Some people's behaviour absolutely warrants that. But on an individual level, we have to take accountability for what we consume on a daily basis, because if we’re not careful we will burn ourselves out in the quest for consumption.
So maybe this is the time to start a new bubble? To start a fresh. Either way, I know for sure that I am pleased to be on this journey with you all, excited to see where the wind will take us.
For those who saw last weeks post, Pride: An Introverts Guide, you can get 20% off tickets for Classical Pride HERE using the code DIVA at checkout. It’s in the top right hand corner of the page once you’ve selected your tickets.
Thanks Classical Pride!