Wow, Chandra. Not surprised at all. I had someone stalk me because of a Medium post. Hunted me down and found my personal email. And have you seen this?
I'm sorry to see this! Until now, (with few exceptions) Substack hasn't had to deal with any kind of moderation. As far as newsletters went, if someone didn't want to see objectionable content, they didn't have to. The platform's architecture is designed that way.
Notes throws that all out the window- and everyone can see anything posted. That is something Susbtack will have to get out in front of quickly. I don't think Best is against that so much as he doesn't have a fully fleshed out plan yet. Either that or he's so used to giving an answer that worked pre-Notes that being put on the spot the way Nilay Patel did threw him for a loop. Not for nothing, the entire interview with the Verge is worth a listen. Ditto the one Best & Hamish McKenzie did with Kara Swisher.
There are of course, no shortage of free speech absolutists online. That's all well and good, but they always miss the fact that free speech doesn't exist online or on privately run platforms.
Oh, I learned about Spangle the hard way! I kept getting emails that he had commented on a ton of my posts, even really old ones. At first, it seemed cool. Maybe a new superfan? At any rate, that evaporated pretty quickly when I saw what he was posting. The first-and so far- only person I've had to block on here.
Also: I realize I may not've been clear before, but I am all for block/report/culture change.
Linda, I love it when you analyze and share what you found. You're right that SS is Twiter's sweeter/nicer sister. I haven't had a lot of time for either, with subbing increasing with the end of school approaching.
God, time is always the thing, hey? I figure if I make a habit of sharing something each morning that I liked the day before, maybe that would be a fun thing. We shall see. lol. So far I've already fallen off the wagon. lol
Linda, I see your point, and to be honest, I am still confused about how to really use Notes. I see the potential to lose a lot of time scrolling through. I also see the potential to connect to other Substack users. Which side of the fence I'm on depends on the day, but I'm committed to learning more. Feel free to offer tips, if you have, about how to contain and monitor time spent on Notes (this is true for other areas I peruse as well). Focus is hard when there are so many fun places to go.
I try to set time limits. 15 mins on notes. An hour on Medium. Etc. It doesn't always work but it helps me pay attention so I don't wonder where the time went hours later. lol
I've heard from some activist and social justice writer friends, that they've been harassed in the Notes, but Substack has a strict no-interference policy so they don't care to do any moderating. :( So I haven't checked the notes much (though I'm just a reader, not a writer here on Substack.) It was disheartening too for me to see that interview with one of the Substack CEOs, where he refused to say anything about whether blatant racism is allowed. They were stubbornly adhering to a "free speech", "will not interfere" stance, yikes!
But about Twitter Tweets, yeah, it looks like the Tweets that get most engagement, either ask the reader for their opinions, or make a provocative or interesting (or amusing) statement. Or, some writers state a strong opinion that reflects what many others also feel. So a lot of us click like or even comment to show our solidarity.
Tweets that get very little attention, include things that require more specialized knowledge or experience. One writer I follow who usually gets lots of engagement, asked about Evolutionary Psychology and David Buss's book. I was very passionate about the topic and commented. But nobody else commented and there were very few likes, from what I remember.
I am seeing a little bit of everything. I don't spend a whole lot of time on the Home tab, as it can be a lot. The Subscriber tab is awesome, and the new one that lets you see Notes from people your subscribers read offer a lot of insight.
The posts I see getting the most engagement tend to be ones restacking someone else's work as opposed to promoting one's own.
So far, I'm really not seeing a use for Notes, or Chat, in my Substack. This might be because I really don't want to use it as a(nother) social platform, but purely as a distribution tool for my serialised stories. Most of my readers aren't Substack "natives", they're folk I've brought to Substack (e.g. from FB) with the promise of a weekly story episode – and not bothering them with anything else. I'm seriously concerned that the increasing bells and whistles will scare these loyal readers away, and replace them with follow-for-follow types (like on Medium) who have little genuine interest in reading my fiction.
Wow, Chandra. Not surprised at all. I had someone stalk me because of a Medium post. Hunted me down and found my personal email. And have you seen this?
https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2018/03/online-violence-against-women-chapter-3-2/
You stay safe, too. It can be pretty ugly out there.
This is my big problem with Substack notes- no moderation .
I'm sorry to see this! Until now, (with few exceptions) Substack hasn't had to deal with any kind of moderation. As far as newsletters went, if someone didn't want to see objectionable content, they didn't have to. The platform's architecture is designed that way.
Notes throws that all out the window- and everyone can see anything posted. That is something Susbtack will have to get out in front of quickly. I don't think Best is against that so much as he doesn't have a fully fleshed out plan yet. Either that or he's so used to giving an answer that worked pre-Notes that being put on the spot the way Nilay Patel did threw him for a loop. Not for nothing, the entire interview with the Verge is worth a listen. Ditto the one Best & Hamish McKenzie did with Kara Swisher.
There are of course, no shortage of free speech absolutists online. That's all well and good, but they always miss the fact that free speech doesn't exist online or on privately run platforms.
Oh, I learned about Spangle the hard way! I kept getting emails that he had commented on a ton of my posts, even really old ones. At first, it seemed cool. Maybe a new superfan? At any rate, that evaporated pretty quickly when I saw what he was posting. The first-and so far- only person I've had to block on here.
Also: I realize I may not've been clear before, but I am all for block/report/culture change.
I'm all for it.
Linda, I love it when you analyze and share what you found. You're right that SS is Twiter's sweeter/nicer sister. I haven't had a lot of time for either, with subbing increasing with the end of school approaching.
Keep analyzing! I learn from you! Thank you!
Hugs,
Linda
God, time is always the thing, hey? I figure if I make a habit of sharing something each morning that I liked the day before, maybe that would be a fun thing. We shall see. lol. So far I've already fallen off the wagon. lol
Linda, I see your point, and to be honest, I am still confused about how to really use Notes. I see the potential to lose a lot of time scrolling through. I also see the potential to connect to other Substack users. Which side of the fence I'm on depends on the day, but I'm committed to learning more. Feel free to offer tips, if you have, about how to contain and monitor time spent on Notes (this is true for other areas I peruse as well). Focus is hard when there are so many fun places to go.
I try to set time limits. 15 mins on notes. An hour on Medium. Etc. It doesn't always work but it helps me pay attention so I don't wonder where the time went hours later. lol
I've heard from some activist and social justice writer friends, that they've been harassed in the Notes, but Substack has a strict no-interference policy so they don't care to do any moderating. :( So I haven't checked the notes much (though I'm just a reader, not a writer here on Substack.) It was disheartening too for me to see that interview with one of the Substack CEOs, where he refused to say anything about whether blatant racism is allowed. They were stubbornly adhering to a "free speech", "will not interfere" stance, yikes!
But about Twitter Tweets, yeah, it looks like the Tweets that get most engagement, either ask the reader for their opinions, or make a provocative or interesting (or amusing) statement. Or, some writers state a strong opinion that reflects what many others also feel. So a lot of us click like or even comment to show our solidarity.
Tweets that get very little attention, include things that require more specialized knowledge or experience. One writer I follow who usually gets lots of engagement, asked about Evolutionary Psychology and David Buss's book. I was very passionate about the topic and commented. But nobody else commented and there were very few likes, from what I remember.
I am seeing a little bit of everything. I don't spend a whole lot of time on the Home tab, as it can be a lot. The Subscriber tab is awesome, and the new one that lets you see Notes from people your subscribers read offer a lot of insight.
The posts I see getting the most engagement tend to be ones restacking someone else's work as opposed to promoting one's own.
I'm also 100% for the dog pics. lol.
So far, I'm really not seeing a use for Notes, or Chat, in my Substack. This might be because I really don't want to use it as a(nother) social platform, but purely as a distribution tool for my serialised stories. Most of my readers aren't Substack "natives", they're folk I've brought to Substack (e.g. from FB) with the promise of a weekly story episode – and not bothering them with anything else. I'm seriously concerned that the increasing bells and whistles will scare these loyal readers away, and replace them with follow-for-follow types (like on Medium) who have little genuine interest in reading my fiction.
Am I missing something important, I wonder?
ooh, notes are another rabbit hole to fall into. It is a lot friendlier so far. I think it's going to be a great networking tool.