138/ We Need To Talk About Twitter w/ Musa Okwonga and Justin Salhani

Aug 24, 2023

Guests Musa Okwonga and Justin Salhani discuss the impact of Twitter on society, including addiction, lack of transparency, and mental health. They explore the role of race and identity in online discussions, frustrations with Twitter's current state, and the manipulation of bad faith actors. They also highlight the importance of physical spaces and the significance of websites and multiple platforms for journalists.

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Introduction

00:00 • 5min

The Impact of Twitter on Society

04:57 • 26min

Debates on Race and Identity, Rainbow Cakes, and the Frustrations with the Current State of Twitter

31:26 • 2min

The Role of Bad Faith Actors in Shaping Online Discussions

33:07 • 29min

The Power of Physical Spaces and Online Activism in the Fight Against Fascism

01:02:35 • 2min

The Importance of Websites and Multiple Platforms for Journalists

01:04:51 • 12min

Expressing Gratitude, Desiring Merchandise, and Promoting Patreon

01:16:53 • 2min

After some 12 years on the site, I've finally deleted my Twitter account. Its takeover by a profoundly narcissistic, mediocre and insecure bigot gave me that extra excuse I'd been looking for all these years.

But why does any of that matter? After all, isn't it 'just a website'?

Yes. And no. Whether you are an activist or a scholar or a journalist or a policy-maker, Twitter has had an undeniable influence over your life - even if you've never been on it.

I was a very active user of that site. I gathered some 34,000 followers, had my tweets featured in mainstream media dozens of times, and made a lot of friends. Twitter is also how a lot of my work got published, and how so many people even heard about me in the first place. For that, I'll be forever grateful.

But still, I quit it, and I ain't going back. I've reached this conclusion after many years of deliberation. Weighing the pros (exposure, networking, connections etc) and cons (addiction, restlessness, a huge waste of time etc). I don't know whether this is the right decision for everyone (although at this rate the site might become irrelevant soon enough anyway) and in many ways this conversation isn't even about that.

I invited returning guests Musa Okwonga and Justin Salhani to talk about the impacts of social media on our world, with a focus on Twitter.

You can support The Fire These Times on ⁠⁠patreon.com/firethesetimes⁠⁠ with a monthly or yearly donation and get a lot of perks including early access, exclusive videos, monthly hangouts, access to the book club, merch and more.

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You can follow Joey on: ⁠Website⁠ | ⁠Instagram⁠ | ⁠Bluesky⁠ | ⁠Mastodon⁠, or reach out to him via email at ⁠contact@thefirethesetimes.com⁠

You can follow Musa on: ⁠Website⁠ | ⁠Bluesky⁠ | ⁠Twitter⁠ | ⁠Instagram⁠

You can follow Justin on: ⁠Website⁠ | ⁠Bluesky⁠ | ⁠Twitter⁠ | ⁠Instagram⁠

Episode Credits

Host: Joey Ayoub
Producer: Joey Ayoub
Music: Rap and Revenge
Main theme design: Wenyi Geng
Sound editor: Joey Ayoub
Episode design: Joey Ayoub