(big read incoming)
I was reading some of the replies on 1980Miami's thread about No Smartphones or No Social Media, and then I was reminded about that time FB and Insta went down for a bit, and that go me thinking...
If FB, Insta, and Twitter were to completely *POOF* overnight, how long do you think it would take for the gen pop to start looking at places like Neocities or Mastodon, or forums, or even one of the MySpace clone sites to have an online presence or stay connected? How many of them you think would actually be PUSHED to making their own site, How many would just give up on the internet and actually go outside and touch grass?
(Just to be nice there's still Youtube, Tiktok, Tumblr, and Discord in this timeline btw
It'll still be a shithole because YouTube can still censor people if they so please, Tiktok will continue to be a front for China/The Chinese Communist Party to infiltrate and steal people information and intellectual properties, Discord will still have trannies, pedophiles, and such roaming about, and tumblr would still continue to fester disgusting beliefs that were the source of gamergate and later, the social justice movement.
But that aside I'm gonna focus this on two fronts; economic and social/cultural
Economically speaking...
If social media were to go down, realistically speaking this would be very disastrous for all parties accounted for. Including those who use it for their small businesses/startup companies, YouTube channel, and independent professions which includes anyone who takes their hobbies as a job (Artists, Gamers, Reviewers/Critics... etc.) and those who consider themselves Journalists BUT do not belong to any news organization or association whatsoever (think Tim Pool or John Stossel for an example). Plus, all information and data would be instantly wiped off from the internet which is something most networks need to survive. Whether one finds that good or bad is entirely up to their opinions and beliefs alone.
It would also likely lead to an economic crash as well. Maybe small in nature who knows but I would also note that only groups that would benefit the most and more so too would the many media corporations and networks who have since put many platforms at gun point to shut down or outright censor people's right to freely express their opinions without fear of prosecutions of their beliefs. Which by the way, has gone on since 2016 or 2017 when right-wing content and a series of dissenting democrats (whom are likely more moderate in nature) began to pop all over social media platforms after the election of Donald Trump. Much of this content, while varied in degrees of how strong the user's beliefs were, was enough for the many more conservative-natured and even some liberal minded folks to stop taking news media seriously after they've proven to be highly biased and how much bad information they've been receiving since the 60s or earlier depending on how much you researched on this subject.
Should social media be gone and with the current state of YouTube around this time would be a major win for news networks as they'll be the only source of news for people to watch and due to how most of them are biased and tend to get things wrong this would be a major loss for everyone who opposes news network stations such as CNN or Fox. Also Government officials and candidates who are more ambitious in nature will also take this as a win too meaning they can push for false information depending on the party, who is the president, and so forth and actually Joe Biden's Administration can be used as an example as they constantly push for people to simply "follow the science" and force people to take the vaccine despite their concerns thankfully there's enough push back against Joe Biden's administration and many other officials too. But without social media with how rapid information can spread on there, the things we're hearing in regards to government corruption and so forth from 2014 to now would easily be kept under the rug until later when much of the evidence has been destroyed (MK Ultra anyone?)
Socially/Culturally Speaking...
While many here would agree that things would be better and believe me the thought of some people such as Divas, Lolcows, and what not would be forced to go back into the workforce is funny as hell. There are some things to consider however.
Should social media disappear much of our current (US/Gen Z Kids) and younger generations are likely going to flock over to discord and Tik Tok considering that these two are the more mainstream platforms than we are to think. They're not Forums or IRC. As Myspace, the earliest social media website, likely if people migrate there it would continue to exist in same vein as Facebook does. (Keep in mind to those who were in high school when Myspace was popular even it too had its fair share of drama and psychological rewiring on the human brain long before Facebook, Twitter, and what not took that into overdrive.) But as for the more alternative or "clones" I'm not sure how the more supposedly "right winged" media platforms like Gab or Parler will take in these people. Given that how nowadays a niche community can be outright destroyed by a sudden influx of people who likely associate themselves with progressive identity groups such as the LGBTQ and BLM or are ideologues of many ideologies on the left. Most likely possible outcomes are; they're banned/gatekept from entering or Parler and Gab will be pressured into demands that favor the more polarized groups of people assuming if the owners of both will attempt.
Likely the many users on the internet, those who aren't tech savvy enough to form their own website or are even aware such services like Wix, neocities, etc., to help them make their sites are likely going just going to stick to whatever platform is currently available to them. As for the drop of people using the internet, I'm not expecting much change on a massive scale a side from 'hey, Twitter no longer exists' so that's one thing to celebrate, I guess? Unfortunately, while yes, the internet or social media (whichever comes first) is to blame for the sudden decay of civil society. I wouldn't blame the internet entirely on that issue and if anything, the issues surrounding our societies today is much larger not so monocausal than it is thought of. In fact, a good example of this is how there is an increasing number of people who uses social media and observe what's being posted on there or people who use forums, message boards, IRC, an such. Who are looking what being posted and what going out in the world.
A common response I am also seeing is this otherwise pessimistic and downright bleak view formed from the observation others and their interactions with people varying from different backgrounds and opinions. I should note that both social media users and non-social media users tend to have a common trait in each other that seem to suggest that none of these people have any meaning in their lives and lack necessary social capital and bonds such as family, friendships, associations, and sense of belonging in their communities outside the internet itself and generally view themselves as nothing more than a mere powerless speck. I'm not attacking anyone here who believes in this mindset as I do see and understand why many would feel like that and in fact there are people here in Agora who aren't like this at all! So don't get me wrong what I'm saying here but it is my personal observations alone.
So, in terms of people going "insane" I don't see that happening. Sure, there will be a shock and some panic but I'd expect that eventually people will end up forgetting about it within a week and have already found new platforms to use. Especially the fact that there will be entrepreneurs who are willing to play game in making their own platforms online and compete in a somewhat newly renewed market competition without the big players such as Twitter and Facebook with their subsidiaries like Instagram and snapchat taking up the market. The only problem is that other big players like Discord and Tiktok and to an extent, YouTube, will likely create an uphill battle for the many newer platforms out there. Since they're the exception in OP's question.
Overall...
While I do not like social media and every aspect it comes with and had created, I do see the importance of social media and if anything, I'd argue that it's an essential tool for everyone to use regardless how everybody here feels about it. This of course is running the assumption of normalfags not wanting to learn about the internet, computer technology, computer services... etc. which in most case, yeah, some don't but there's also a good chunk of them who DO want to learn and are willing to learn about the internet in its early stages back in the 80s and 90s and the technology that makes the internet great.
Same with newfags not wanting to adopt the many lingoes and rules in the various niche subgroup online that goes on here especially in the gaming community itself (lol). This brings a conflict that comes down to newfags/normalfags on wanting to be nice which there is nothing wrong with that but sometimes it's better to go with the flow and let those who just wanna say derogative words or slurs without inconvenience. Plus, that latter is much better as just reacting to them will get you targeted and trolled by those people.
I do feel like that in the absence of social media we've certainly taken both it and the internet for granted at least for the majority who only use it for entertainment purposes and to firm their beliefs with likeminded people who are never a part of their lives outside the boundaries of our computers. I do think personally that it be imperative to start using the internet less often than naught and to start pursuing new friendships, meet up with old ones, and form associations outside the internet which is a lot better than it is than being alone and also will give you actual meaning too.
In the end however, should social media disappear while it will greatly improve the general mental health of some people, I don't think it will heal/improve the country, economy, or society in the long run. Essentially this whole scenario can be seen as a "temporary solution to a permanent problem" scenario in which any form of alternative and solution would only mitigate the large problem that is still looming over us. That problem would be a decay within the societies in every country here in the west and elsewhere in the world. Atomization, isolation, and general loneliness lead to vulnerability in one's mental health, cognitive or critical thinking (which ever comes firsts) and most importantly it causes them to be easily manipulated by those more extreme and polarized into following their beliefs making them ready targets for radicalization. In fact, the last two decades (or half a century and a decade if you've dig deep enough like me) should be an example to that looming problem.
TL:DR
If social media were to disappear then in my opinion this would happen:
Pros:
- Mental Health among people of all ages will greatly improve
- There would be Incentives for people to create their own websites and forums to discuss things they enjoy
- Entrepreneurship for social media will explode in popularity as to replace the old platforms to provide a possible "fairer" ground for discourse and discussion
- It could possibly lead to deradicalization as people are allowed to express themselves without fear of persecution or ostracization and would clear many misconceptions and debunk bad information.
- All extremities on the political spectrum will be pushed all the way back to the fringes where they should've belonged as they'll start to become less popular among the masses.
- lolcows and attentions whore will have to get a job or become homeless. Odds of latter is 90%.
Cons:
- Censorship is more than likely to be more prevalent than ever and more so as News Media networks and Hollywood continue to be prevalent in holding platforms at gunpoint to protect their content from dissenting or opposition groups.
- Most people who do not use the internet as a tool to search up information and instead as entertainment purposes will likely flock to any remaining platforms or try to attempt to migrate to older more niche parts of the internet leading to a series of more mass migration as new users are gatekept or the owner is force to cave in to the demands of new people.
- News Industries will continue to dominate media continuing to receive the same source that might not be creditable entirely or should they be, that source would be subjected to sensationalism, yellow journalism, and/or be dismissed as trash if it comes into conflict with the narrative they'll try to spin. (Remember the overpopulation shtick back in the 60s? That was sensationalized and the damage it did now affects the modern-day politics of today)
- Extremities/Radicals will continue to be encouraged or commemorated by Narrative Driven media as there won't be anyone to oppose them on both YouTube and any remaining media platforms out there.
- Any criticism against the government or at least the people running the government, along with opposition against more mainstream opinions and ideologies are likely to be kept under the rug until discovered later when most people had forgotten about it. Again, MKUltra anyone?
- It would cause many hobby-driven peoples to drop their hobby and apply at a job (assuming that there are those who don't own a job) in order to sustain a steady source of income giving them less time to pursue their hobbies.
- It will cause an economic crash for all mom-and-pop shops/local businesses who need social media as a way to advertise their products and establishment and given that today there are more federal regulations and mandates that outright crush all basic competition unless they're a corporation whom are safe harbored by subsidies in the form of our tax money. And that's not even bringing up the state regulations and mandates either! (Especially coming from someone who lives in a state where trying to own a business is nigh impossible given the many policies, laws, and regulations that were passed over the spawn of fucking 4 decades)
- Twitter might be gone, sure, but it won't take long for another platform to be the new twitter. Let's face that type of shit isn't going anywhere unless the platform decides to stop interfering with the content being made by both private individuals on a networking field.
To quote Lain on that last point in cons:
The Wired [The Internet] is not an upper layer of the real world. That's what that man was mistaken about. A network is a field to pass along information. Information doesn't stand still there. Information functions by always being in motion.
While I do hope this should answer your question. I hope this doesn't exactly upset anyone who hopes the disappearance of social media would be a major improvement of our society but unfortunately the reality isn't that honky dory than one expects to be. Serious consequences will occur should such a scenario DO happen in lives in the possible near future which I hope to God it doesn't! With that's that my big long ass post, thanks for coming to my ted talk everyone.