Even more Bluesky Growth
Bluesky is breaking ceiling after ceiling for open social media. It's getting a bit boring now isn't it?
We've all heard about the success of Bluesky. I mean, even ITV News did a segment on it.
Don't get me wrong, it is brilliant news. Not only because it means people are finally getting away from X, but because Bluesky is open.
Open social media offers a chance to escape the cycle of good product turns bad product and wiping the slate clean to start again. Instead, open social media offers the chance to build in a space where you can easily hop-skip-jump to the next best platform without losing your community. Better yet, it gives you the chance to actually take ownership of your presence, like a website but on social media.
Another huge plus for Bluesky, at least from my perspective, is that it is run by a woman. Women are very noticeably absent at all levels of tech, but since getting into open social media, I was shocked at how bad it was (I have a couple of theories why). Jay, CEO of Bluesky, is changing that.
But, like I said, we get it. Bluesky is good, people like it, and they're moving there.
So, this blog post is going to be a bit different. I'm going to celebrate all the fun, quirky, and weird things I've seen on Bluesky that have made it feel alive (and like it actually might replace X).
Pop Base & Culture Crave Accounts
I know we all use social media for different things. Some people like their politics, others want to argue about the complexities of programming, but almost everyone uses social media to get their entertainment news.
On X, these accounts cracked the system. Simple, informative, but inherently human posts. No doubt they're more popular with younger people, they certainly don't have the huge followings of more 'grown up' accounts, but they offer a bridge.
I've said for a long time that what we need to make New Social stick is 'fans'. Be that of sport, K-POP, the latest TV show etc. These accounts give those people a reason to stop relying so much on X and set up their accounts here.
Online fans are, generally, also younger people. If we want New Social to succeed, on Bluesky, Threads, Mastodon, or otherwise we need young people to like it. They are the future of the world, in all aspects, including social media.
That's why seeing these accounts now on Bluesky was, to me, the biggest sign that this could be it.
The Force
A lot of big names have joined Bluesky recently. Everyone has their own favourite celebrities or public figures but a LOT of people like Mark Hamill and his presence is a big tick on the platforms report.
A 'rebel' platform with a Jedi on its side is always going to go up in a lot of peoples estimations.
Foxes In Love & Comics
Foxes In Love, a very popular comic, joined Bluesky pretty early on. But, their success on the platform has opened the door for many of the other popular comics that shine a bit of light into the darkness of social media to join.
It's also really cute that almost everyone can find some sort of representation in these simple comics. After all, we're all human - on Bluesky at least.
The MotoGP Journalists
This one is niche and a direct result of my love of MotoGP - the highest level of motorbike racing.
I admit, I had expected MotoGP to be one of the sports that fails to ever leave X. It's not run by the most progressive people, like most motorsport sadly.
But, a number of the English speaking journalists are happy to take matters into their own hands.
In particular, David Emmett joined Bluesky very early on. He's done some convincing and managed to pull Mat Oxley onto the platform too. There may be more that I'm not aware of, but - for now - these two grizzled paddock veterans provide enough news to avoid X!
The 'Gram
Until someone makes an Instagram clone on AT-Protocol, this feed is the next best thing.
It displays only pictures posted by people you follow - just like Instagram before they started showing you random things in your feed.
Obviously, this then means you have to follow those with a good eye if you want this feed to be pretty. Mine is usually just a load of screenshots from others in social media/tech - but it's a quirky little feed I find myself drawn to. It almost breaks the fourth wall by letting you directly see that the poster is seeing.
SciArt
Another really cool visual feed is SciArt.
As the name suggests, this feed displays posts intersecting science and art! So, if you're a visual learner like me, you can pick up loads of cool knowledge here and see some pretty pictures.
Swiftie Labeler
Now, I think the ability to label accounts is pretty neat. But - like many things - it can cause some arguments, especially when those labels are for moderation and used heavy handedly.
One labeler which does not have this issue is the Taylor Swift self-labeller to mark your favourite Taylor Swift 'Era'.
The Swifties joined Bluesky in a large wave after Trump won the U.S. election. Like so many fan cultures (see my post on ARMY), they got stuck in to learning more and getting settled.
A neat product they built as part of this settling in is this self-labeller which lets you see the people across Bluesky's favourite Swift album. It's cute, it's fun, it's unique.
Personally, I'm a Speak Now girl.
The Silliness
I think the main feeling I get on Bluesky is that no one is taking themselves too seriously (although maybe that's a reflection of my feed).
Developers, politicians, journalists, fans, and normal people are over there and just having a good time. They're being themselves, not the version they created to do well on a platform which would stifle their reach if they didn't.
Should I be more silly on Bluesky? Probably. But, I'm shy and British and have to keep some sense of professionalism as a young queer woman in an industry that does not like young queer women.
What's missing?
So, Bluesky is cool. But, it's not perfect. There are still communities missing that are stuck on X or other social platforms.
For me, the main ones are the women's sport crowd (a community which would really really benefit from leaving the toxicity of X), fandoms, and young people.
I know I said earlier that we're seeing more fans and young people (going hand in hand), but it's not enough!
There aren't enough queer people making Hollywood style edits from their favourite TV shows or films that rewrite the narrative to reflect their community. Or people analysing in depth books or music line by line to find the hidden meanings.
There isn't that stupid Gen Z culture yet which is so amazing when it works. I'm thinking of the TikTok style comments where everyone changes their profile picture, or the running jokes that span across creators, accounts, and communities. The closest Bluesky got was Alf...
I know others will have different desires for Bluesky, they'll maybe want to post polls or have a tip button. I get that. I also know a lot of people will be happy with the people they are able to follow and interact with. Many of those have found their X community moved over.
Sadly, I'm hard to please. I want more diversity. I want more random. I want more crazy.