{"id":1116651,"date":"2025-12-17T11:38:00","date_gmt":"2025-12-17T08:38:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1116651"},"modified":"2025-12-17T11:38:00","modified_gmt":"2025-12-17T08:38:00","slug":"5-social-media-platforms-that-are-actually-social","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1116651","title":{"rendered":"5 social media platforms that are actually social"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Is social media dead? That seems to be the big question of 2025. As billionaire-owned platforms grow increasingly vibeless, more young people are switching to <\/span>burner phones<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>app-blockers<\/span><\/a>, and <\/span>MP3 players<\/span><\/a> to curb their internet use. The shift raises doubts about the future of the social media giants of the past \u2013and the toll they\u2019ve taken on our attention spans, screen time and sanity.<\/span><\/p>\n

In a recent piece<\/a> for Vogue Business<\/em>, <\/span>writer Amy Francombe explored how high-end fashion is shifting from digital to physical experiences, mirroring the TikTok virality of trends like \u2018having a life core\u2019 and Gen Z\u2019s \u2018analogue bags\u2019 (literally a tote bag filled with books, puzzles, notebooks, activities). \u201cPeople are really turned off by technology right now,\u201d Catherine Goetze<\/a> notes.<\/span><\/p>\n

However, not all of us want \u2013 or can afford \u2013 to log off completely. Going totally offline is a luxury, and while city life might offer endless opportunities to socialise IRL, it\u2019s not quite the same if, say, you\u2019ve been banished to the outskirts of Burton-on-Trent after a string of unfortunate life events. Maybe touching grass just sets off your hayfever.<\/span><\/p>\n

Perhaps a healthier practice is simply to engage more discernment with our wider internet habits \u2013 to seek out alternate pockets of community on newer, unsullied platforms. But ultimately: where do we go? Where are the cool people actually<\/em> hanging out online? <\/span>As someone whose entire life would\u2019ve been completely different without the internet, I eagerly took on the quest to explore a new generation of ad-free, slop-free social platforms \u2013 a hopecore offering for fellow lifelong being-on-the-computer enjoyers.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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ARE.NA<\/strong><\/a><\/h1>\n

Starting with a platform that\u2019s already been around for a while might seem counterintuitive \u2013 but Are.na really is that girl. \u201cAre.na<\/span><\/a> is 14 years old and still in its creation phase,\u201d founder Charles Broskoski tells me, describing it as an enriching mix of both Wikipedia and Tumblr. The site functions like a communal file system, where users build libraries of references and ideas into themed collections.<\/p>\n

Created by a small, independent team of writers and artists, Are.na is inherently appealing to right-brained thinkers. \u201cWe have a name for the ideal type of person who uses Are.na: the \u2018connected knowledge collector\u2019,\u201d Broskoski says. \u201cIt basically means someone who is super curious, who is looking at the world with curiosity and who takes joy in connecting dots.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The platform is built around \u201cblocks\u201d (pieces of content) and \u201cchannels\u201d (essentially folders). \u201cPeople use this very basic structure to do research, make moodboards, log dreams, take notes, assemble photo albums, and a million other things that we\u2019ve never thought of.\u201d What\u2019s more is that there are no personalised algorithms and suggested content, and even better: no ads! \u201cSocial platforms play a large part in determining how we perceive the world,\u201d Broskoski says. \u201cSo how they function plays a part in determining how the world actually works.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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