I think if people write valueless stuff then it should be criticized, but you seem to be looking at the bad influences this kind of piece might have on people—they might seek to have (or feign) humiliating experiences to get famous—but not on the positive influences: they might not get scammed when they otherwise would have. Needless to …
I think if people write valueless stuff then it should be criticized, but you seem to be looking at the bad influences this kind of piece might have on people—they might seek to have (or feign) humiliating experiences to get famous—but not on the positive influences: they might not get scammed when they otherwise would have. Needless to say, a lot more people are getting scammed than are trying to get published in New York Magazine, so the article seems like a positive to me.
I also think there doesn't have to be some Big Societal Trend for us to benefit from reading about people's foibles, because it's a chance to learn empathy and expand our understanding of human behavior. To the extent that people reading this think "ha, that's who gets scammed—stupid people, people other than me" (or in the case of that comment you highlighted, "sheltered rich people; no one with real-world experience could fall for this"), I think they're missing the point of the piece in a big way. Similarly I think the message "if something bad happens to you that's your own fault, how shameful; keep it to yourself" is more harmful than oversharing is.
I think if people write valueless stuff then it should be criticized, but you seem to be looking at the bad influences this kind of piece might have on people—they might seek to have (or feign) humiliating experiences to get famous—but not on the positive influences: they might not get scammed when they otherwise would have. Needless to say, a lot more people are getting scammed than are trying to get published in New York Magazine, so the article seems like a positive to me.
I also think there doesn't have to be some Big Societal Trend for us to benefit from reading about people's foibles, because it's a chance to learn empathy and expand our understanding of human behavior. To the extent that people reading this think "ha, that's who gets scammed—stupid people, people other than me" (or in the case of that comment you highlighted, "sheltered rich people; no one with real-world experience could fall for this"), I think they're missing the point of the piece in a big way. Similarly I think the message "if something bad happens to you that's your own fault, how shameful; keep it to yourself" is more harmful than oversharing is.