I have noticed that there are a ridiculous amount of accounts on Tumblr in radical feminist spaces that claim to be young detransitioners.
At first, I believed the accounts I saw. But as I observed more and more, I noticed a lot of strange and implausible stories. I know some trans people start E or T in their late teens, and surgery is possible, but the quantity of accounts claiming to have had top surgery at 16 or having had a friend have top surgery before 18 does not match with the numbers.
I’ve also noticed a sick eagerness to lie, and also to make fake accounts to send themselves disgusting things to react to.
I’m really concerned about this. There’s this strange ecosystem where teenage girls are interacting with bad actors, and I don’t think this radicalization pipeline is quite studied in the same way Gamergate was. The Rowling stuff is part of it, but it’s a lot more complicated. People need to start deradicalizing Gen Z/Alpha girls and women.
I think a lot of people will just stop using social media rather than move to platforms that don’t exist to manipulate people
And for the groups who are ruining the internet by making it a tool for mass manipulation, that’s fine. Their hope is those who engage with and believe the disinfo will stay, those who don’t will leave and be apathetic and isolated.
They’re betting that basically everyone will fall in to one of those two camps. I don’t think that’s how things will play out. Long term, the places they can’t take over will be more stable and grow even without corporate money funded elements to draw people in.