Now that the Bluesky platform is in full swing, I remembered that I had an active account there and didn’t pay much attention to it. Yesterday I decided to come in and, indeed, I checked how some of the accounts I saw in X also appeared there. But today I had a somewhat different feeling, and it wasn’t really a very pleasant thing.
The awakening of a sleeping account
For months, my Bluesky account remained inactive. I saw it as another option in the world of social media. Now that it’s becoming very current, I went back to look around and see how lucky there is already a lot of content in Spanish. It’s true, This reminds me a lot of Twitter from 10 or more years agos. Yesterday Sunday, I was able to verify that there was something that wasn’t starting to please me and now I see that the panorama is the same.
An unflattering deja vu
I admit that the feeling was quite disconcerting. And to my great surprise and disappointment, many accounts that I had blocked on X due to their toxic content and the constant politicization of the discourse, are now present on Bluesky. And worse, repeating the exact same behavior that had made X such an unpleasant place.
Toxicity migrates with users
It’s as if toxicity is baggage that these users can’t leave behind. The same incendiary arguments, the same polarization tactics, the same desire to transform every conversation into a political battlefield. All of this was starting to contaminate Bluesky’s feed, threatening to turn him into a clone of the worst of X.
This experience made me wonder if it is really possible to escape the polarization and toxicity of social media. Is this a platform or user problem? Can a social network remain neutral when its users bring their ideological battles with them? Could it be that Elon Musk is not so guilty and is being portrayed as such a demon?
What awaits us Bluesky
Bluesky now faces a significant challenge. Can it deliver on its promise of being a healthier digital space? Will it be able to put in place effective moderation mechanisms that stop the dissemination of toxic content without falling into censorship? The answer to these questions will determine if Bluesky can really offer a long-term alternative or if it will just become another digital battlefield.
Shared responsibility
My experience has taught me that the quality of a social network does not only depend on its design or policies, but also on how we decide to use it. As users, we have a responsibility to create the type of digital environment we want to participate in. Perhaps instead of constantly searching for new platforms, we should think about how we can help make any digital space a more constructive and less toxic place.
In the meantime, I will continue to follow the evolution of Bluesky, hoping he can weather the tide of toxicity and stay true to his original vision. Only time will tell if this new sky will manage to stay blue or if it will become cloudy with the same storms we’ve seen on other platforms.
