Since the disappointing election (for some), many have decided to leave traditional forms of social media for alternatives such as Parler, but no one has talked about an obvious solution – your own website.
Back in the late 90s & early 2000s, I made a nice side-income creating websites for local businesses in my little town. Websites were the “bright and shiny” thing, and everyone wanted to get on board, so they could say that they have their internet home. It was a great time for creative expression and innovation, and I was very happy to be a part of helping others achieve their dreams. When social media became “the new thing,” and became more accessible to the masses, many abandoned websites, seeing them as “too much trouble,” “only for businesses,” antiquated, and other excuses. With many now thinking about or leaving traditional forms of social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, etc.), alternatives like Parler, MeWe, and the rest have become a new choice in claiming a piece of territory in which to stake a new claim.
But what about websites? Why not make one now?
Censorship is the main force in driving people away from traditional social media platforms. “They are owned and we have to play by their rules,” are the lamentations from a growing not-so-silent minority. To be sure, if you are in someone else’s house, you have to abide by their rules, and the rules of those that pay the bills (corporations through ads), but not so with websites. This “ownership” is what I’m talking about – I pay for this space, which hosts this website, which has this post you’re reading. I have control, and I love it. To be sure, their are some rules, but I don’t plan on showing people how to make a bomb, display porn, or other things of that nature, which are the main rules of any hosting platform, so I can speak my mind without any worries.
Social media used to be the thing in which I let people know that I’ve created something new on my website. Facebook used to be the place where I would point people to my webpage that would show my thoughts, videos, images, and the like, and the comments section under the posts was the discussion area. Slowly, over the course of several years, it flipped. Now, most people make all their thoughts known, show their family pics, host their videos solely on social media, all of them now hoping that their content won’t get censored, blocked, or worse yet, thrown down the memory hole, never to be seen, searched, and quickly forgotten.
Websites are quite a bit different, and I think we need to take another look at individuals creating their own space again.
Hosting a website (blog) is very inexpensive nowadays and creating/setting up a spot has never been easier. Rarely do you have to use code, and if you don’t want the hassle of setting one up, most hosting platforms have a step-by-step process that will guide you through the process.
Or, you could pay a dude like me to do it for you (*wink, wink)
I think we need to reconsider websites, and the communication you can have with your peers.
