It's totally reasonable to expect someone to know that not peeing for an extended amount of time is not healthy. It's common sense that most bodily functions happen for a reason, and stopping the function could be dangerous.
It's even more reasonable to expect that a business running a contest would do their due diligence in assessing the safety of their contestants.
Doesn't matter. Just knowing that something could be very harmful should give any business pause before including it in a contest. This business acted recklessly.
How did we become so lonely and disconnected that watching a stranger's live-stream became a substitute for human contact?
It's something I see in all online video. Lets plays, mukbangs, makeup tutorials.. the game, the eyeshadow, the food is not important. It's having someone talk to you about their day. It makes you feel like you're not alone. Take ReviewBra for example. He barely reviews food anymore. He just sits at a table and says comforting things.
At least he's trying to use this for good. But why has this content taken off in the first place? So many young people I encounter are practically hikikomori.
Digital communication is not inherently substituting human contact. It can be used to augment our relationships - organizing meetups in real life, and keeping in touch with long distance friends. It can also help you make new friendships in real life, or online-only. Online-only friendships are not a problem, as long as you have IRL friendships also.
But read the article. When they talk about this streamers fan base. How some of them felt so depressed, and the stream made them feel like they had a friend. Maybe the stream kept them from ending their life. What makes people so lonely that the stream is the only thing keeping them going?
I'm not critiquing online video. There will always be a need for entertainment. What I'm asking is why so much of it, lately, seems designed to comfort lonely people. And why are so many people in need of that?
I think it's easy to forget about how widespread the reach of these platforms is. The article talks about fans from all over the world.
I'm sure there are a number of chronically super depressed, super isolated individuals, but even just a few people here and there going through a rough patch can add up to huge viewerships on a global scale.
Also, when I was sick in school growing up I had shit daytime TV to watch. Binging on a YouTube stream might have been more entertaining.
> How some of them felt so depressed, and the stream made them feel like they had a friend. Maybe the stream kept them from ending their life. What makes people so lonely that the stream is the only thing keeping them going?
> depressed
> Maybe the stream kept them from ending their life.
Did you not answer your own question? As someone with a lot of social anxiety (it's hard for me to even comment in forums/here) Twitch streams make it feel like I'm getting human interaction. But it's mainly a distraction from the feeling of loneliness, obviously. Hopefully it gives these people the time they need to deal with their social anxiety/depression rather than progressing further down the spiral.
Thank you for commenting. I know it can be hard with the anxiety. I appreciate getting your insight.
I agree with you. These streams can distract you when you feel alone. That might even be a good thing for some.
But I'm trying to figure out why so many people are lonely in the first place, that we would need these streams to fill the void. Maybe we've always been this disconnected, and it just feels worse now. But I have noticed more people feeling isolated and alone.
I remember when I was in college, I felt so much pressure with my courseload that I hid away for days binge watching a tv show. I was avoiding writing a term paper. I was also avoiding my classmates.
I work with teenagers in my profession. And I'm seeing lots of high school students dealing with the same type of anxiety and withdrawl. Is it normal? At that age? Is this becoming more widespread? And if so, what is causing it?
I read this last year, and it confirms what I'm seeing. One of the schools mentioned is actually in my area.
I have no idea why that is, honestly. I think, at least for me, there's always some sort of pressure to have a lot of friends or social interactions. Go on FB, everyone's hanging out with each other and posting about it or talking. Snapchat, same thing. Dating sites everywhere. Dating apps.
But that's about all I can think of. There's probably more going on. I'm just personally thankful that I was able to get that anxiety out of the way via Twitch/streams.
> In my opinion this kind of "extreme speech" should rarely be taken literally
That's what surrogates said about donald trump before the election. The muslim ban was just hyperbole. Then he got elected, and people were getting detained at the airport.
Now I'm not naive, and I know that some of the outrageous speech of online trolls is just for show. The problem is, you can't detect sarcasm online. White supremacist groups are actively recruiting on chan boards. You can't say it's all just a joke.
I believe requiring 10 hour work days are 1. unnecessary and 2. immoral.
10 hour work days IS outrageous. Maybe it's common in this industry, but that doesn't make it any less wrong.
And considering that most tech jobs are exempt, this is just a way of getting you to work more hours for the same amount of pay.
During the last century, we all agreed that a 40 hour work week was the standard. Let's keep it that way. I don't want founders and VC creeps prying the overton window in their favor.
It's even more reasonable to expect that a business running a contest would do their due diligence in assessing the safety of their contestants.