Join me on Notes
Want a more thoughtful, more civil, more substantive alternative to Twitter?
For many years, I’ve been on Twitter (@dgardner). And I’ve found it frustrating.
There are lots of smart people saying interesting things on Twitter and I’ve learned a lot. But Twitter is also toxic.
There are far too many people who love conflict for its own sake. There are too many rabid partisans and ideologues and people whose winds are welded shut. And the social norms — the informal guidelines that tell us what language is acceptable and when we should tone it down — are appalling. People say things on Twitter they would never even think to utter in face-to-face conversation.
I can’t claim to be holier than thou. Twitter dragged me down, too. The sneer and jeer that are routine on Twitter became routine in my tweets. I eventually realized what it was doing to me, and learned, with considerable struggle, to control it. Mostly.
But for years I wondered why we couldn’t have what’s good about Twitter without the toxicity.
Then Substack created Notes.
It’s a social media platform similar to Twitter. But the user has more control over connections and interactions. And Substack doesn't have ads so it has no incentive to gin up conflict and keep people enraged and engaged.
It’s still early days but so far Notes is exactly what I wanted: Lots of smart people. Lots of civil conversation. Lots of learning. Little of the toxicity.
In the weeks ahead, I hope to move more of my Twitter activity over to Notes. And if we get some good network effects going — meaning large numbers of people make the same switch — I may just jump ship entirely.
For the sake of civil conversation, and all the good things that flow from it, please do have a look.
Best,
Dan
How to join
Head to substack.com/notes or find the “Notes” tab in the Substack app. As a subscriber to PastPresentFuture, you’ll automatically see my notes. Feel free to like, reply, or share them around!
You can also share notes of your own. I hope this becomes a space where every reader of PastPresentFuture can share thoughts, ideas, and interesting quotes from the things we're reading on Substack and beyond.
If you encounter any issues, you can always refer to the Notes FAQ for assistance. Looking forward to seeing you there!