(2023-09-30) Review Taylor Lorenz Offers A New History Of The Extremely Online

W David Marx: Review | Taylor Lorenz offers a new history of the ‘Extremely Online.’ As Washington Post technology and culture columnist Taylor Lorenz notes early in her debut book, “Extremely Online: The Untold Story of Fame, Influence, and Power on the Internet,” a “complete history of the internet” would be an impossible, encyclopedic task

She instead boils the past two decades down to a “social history of social media,”

She takes a reporter’s approach to cultural history, interviewing many of the most famous (or at least influential) users of various sites and apps

The resulting social changes wrought by and on these platforms constitute, in Lorenz’s words, a “revolution.”

demolishing “traditional barriers” and devastating “legacy institutions.” For Lorenz, the effects of this revolution were net positive, empowering the marginalized and providing more creative people with gainful employment.

Lorenz makes a strong case that creators — not the tech platforms — truly shaped internet culture.

Apps that partnered with their most creative users prospered, most notably YouTube, while tech executives who fought their power-users, like those at Vine, watched their jobs evaporate.

but does its history amount to a true revolution?

on Lorenz’s particular measure of “fame, influence, and power,” creators have risen in stature as a social group; the influencers are indeed influencing

But what has humanity gained from the revolution Lorenz names and describes — besides new forms of monetization?

“Extremely Online” spends little time on deep interpretations of online culture’s tentpole songs, videos and dances, or otherwise picking out the creative works that defined a generation.

To be fair, pure creativity was never as important in social media as “authenticity.”

Whenever someone complains about the dubious quality of this content stockpile, blame is quickly assigned to the platforms’ nefarious algorithms. But fans clearly adore creators’ marketing videos, sociopathic pranks, and observational comedy, or they would not watch them, buy up the creators’ merch, and attend live tours

One critical flaw in “Extremely Online” is that it offers little insight into the fans who worship the online creators: What makes these particular prankster vloggers and self-absorbed beauty influencers so appealing to the teenage mind?

Understanding why fans are drawn to certain creators might help us make sense of the larger question: whether anything has really changed.

are the creators parlaying their huge audience numbers into widespread social esteem or A-list fame? The vast majority of Lorenz’s protagonists never managed that feat

Our celebrity aristocracy has never been stronger. The public looks to online creators for entertainment, but does not consider them important sources of art or glamour

Lorenz ably demonstrates how online creators fought to be paid for their passion, gumption and moxie, though her book leaves the reader questioning their social relevance

There is a growing, if exhausted, middle-class army of influencers and vloggers, but the professional creative industry remains best positioned to dominate our consciousness.