Nepo babies: the big winners of social networks

A name has become a big advantage in current state of social media. Is this a new social media aristocracy?

Nepotism is not a new phenomenon. The "nepos," nephew in Latin, emerged at the Vatican around the 16th century. The desire to place peers, cousins, or other allies within an institution is a way of preparing for the future (and covering one's bases).

2022 was the year when millions of social media users began to grow irritated with "nepo babies," a contraction of "nepotism" and "baby," and the advantage they have when opening an account on TikTok or Instagram. Platforms generally offer verified or official account status to these sons and daughters of, contributing to strengthening the power of their names, exposing them to hundreds of thousands of potential followers. Just like when you buy a new smartphone and pre-installed applications, on social media, certain users are strongly recommended to us by default. The power of suggestion and the power of prescription blend into a strange mix of genres.

Names and lineage become highly profitable intellectual properties; unlike a classic push, social media tends to automate the strength of nepo accounts. This gives them opportunities to monetize their digital fame or gain even more access to interesting projects.

Is there a counterforce against this digital nepotism? Not really; even in the case of intense bad publicity, the "nepo baby" has little to lose. Kendall Jenner has occasionally seen a few million followers leave, which didn't stop her from accumulating 267 million followers on Instagram to date. Once a critical mass is reached, the nepos would be untouchable, unless completely banned from the platform.

The hunt for nepos is starting to organize online, which is also not a good sign: if no system of checks and balances is established on social networks, the risk is an acceleration of tensions, especially when groups believe there is evident abuse. And the acceleration of the catch-all concept of Cancel Culture?

Vivance - or liveness - is political.

Word of the day: junkorexia

This is the result of a stunning study conducted by the "Center for Countering Digital Hate" after opening various TikTok accounts pretending to be 13-year-old children: on average, a new TikTok user is offered content promoting eating disorders or self-harm after only 30 minutes. Then, every 39 seconds, new content of this type is suggested to the user.

Thirteen years. Thirty minutes. Thirty-nine seconds.

Among the millions of available content, the #Junkorexia trend, which involves users only eating junk food. The mechanism is subtle and challenging to counteract. If TikTok genuinely wanted to curb the issue, even by banning the hashtag, the algorithms automatically propel users into "corners" of the platform in line with content that engages the person the most. I say propel the user rather than spread a video because it is indeed the strength of the platform: being able to finely trap groups of users in real-time around content spaces that act like glue. Diabolus ex Machina!

Impressive links

In an era where we talk about Web 3 and decentralized autonomous organization, understanding the issue of "commons" has never been more timely. Listen to it on the podcast "Le Village Global" by the indispensable Frédéric Martel.

"The commons are resources held in common, whose burden, maintenance, and enjoyment are shared among their users. The commons are therefore goods that belong to everyone and no one: a conception of property that goes beyond ownership to prefer usage."

colette, My Love. The documentary about the legendary boutique recalls how vivance was brought to Paris from 1997 to 2017, from the early days of social networks to their mainstreaming. Still accessible for a few more days, for free.

...see you soon!