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Fake it till you make it: the wolves of Instagram

theguardian.com

11–20 of 267 posts

Re: Fake it till you make it: the wolves of Instagram

#11

Maybe it’s time the EU took a look at advertising. I mean, we’re building things like the GDPR and a lot of legislation to protect minors from the dangers that come from social media. We see loot boxes, underage gambling, traders selling you recommendations for their own products, scammers, young people prostitute them selves to get photo shoots at exotic locations or for luxurary stuff for likes. Probably worse than…

For whatever reason, the EU has never been terribly interested in regulating advertising; that's nearly all national agencies, and varies greatly by country (some of the Nordics ban a lot of advertising to kids, say).

Re: Fake it till you make it: the wolves of Instagram

#12
post #4

One thing I've been struck by with movies and films like the Wolf of Wall Street, the film Wall Street, Fight Club, or even the Great Gatsby is how many people end up coming away with the exact opposite message of the movie. They end up idolizing the vapid, shallow lifestyle that the movie is critiquing, because even though the film is critiquing that it can't help but also make it glamorous. Michael Douglas has said…

Same thing happened with Michael Lewis's Liar's Poker [1]. Written as a parody. Now distributed to junior bankers as a handbook of hustle and an advertisement of the good life promised.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liar%27s_Poker

Re: Fake it till you make it: the wolves of Instagram

#13
post #4

One thing I've been struck by with movies and films like the Wolf of Wall Street, the film Wall Street, Fight Club, or even the Great Gatsby is how many people end up coming away with the exact opposite message of the movie. They end up idolizing the vapid, shallow lifestyle that the movie is critiquing, because even though the film is critiquing that it can't help but also make it glamorous. Michael Douglas has said…

Same thing happened with Michael Lewis's Liar's Poker [1]. Written as a parody. Now distributed to junior bankers as a handbook of hustle and an advertisement of the good life promised. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liar%27s_Poker

I have had scenes from Glengarry Glen Ross played in sales meetings dozens of times.

Re: Fake it till you make it: the wolves of Instagram

#14

I know of a guy who “pivoted” from exotic car rental operator in Florida to Forex and Drop Shipping coach via Instagram. His Lamborghini, chartered jets and 30k followers really shine but I also know he still buys fake shoes. Wouldn’t trust him with $1. Gary Vaynerchuk is spot on in that there are too many experts and not enough practicioners. Showing others how to make it is how these guys are trying to make it.

> Showing others how to make it is how these guys are trying to make it.

You don't actually have to know how to make 30K/month. You just have to have enough people watch your video and sign up to buy your $9.99 ebook. The infomercial is 24/7 now. Kevin Trudeau forever, man! /s

Re: Fake it till you make it: the wolves of Instagram

#15
Throwaway because reasons.

Worked for one the biggest - and most "respectable" player in this "industry".

Between terrible security practices - had to fight for basic stuff that would make any of you grab pitchforks, attempts to get away with as much as they could with regards to regulation and finally the terrible ethics of the system, I didn't last long.

Consider spending a few minutes reading this great article https://www.timesofisrael.com/the-wolves-of-tel-aviv-israels...

Most of the big players might have moved away from binary options, they're still the same morally corrupt drain on society.

Re: Fake it till you make it: the wolves of Instagram

#16

Guy they chose seems like a bad example. - 30k on insta (since 2014): instagram.com/elijah_oezz - 3k on YouTube youtube.com/channel/UCk4fZzhD8fStRHITL4sP_LA - 0 comments on any of his pics Forex trading is certainly big on SM but this guy does not convert a single visitor.

That's because his "followers" are just all fake crap accounts, or people who follow because he's using a bot to follow/unfollow them. Doubtful any of them are willingly paying attention to him. Just look at the wild swings on both sides, as Instagram cleans up the fake accounts.

https://socialblade.com/instagram/user/elijah_oezz/monthly

Re: Fake it till you make it: the wolves of Instagram

#17
post #4

One thing I've been struck by with movies and films like the Wolf of Wall Street, the film Wall Street, Fight Club, or even the Great Gatsby is how many people end up coming away with the exact opposite message of the movie. They end up idolizing the vapid, shallow lifestyle that the movie is critiquing, because even though the film is critiquing that it can't help but also make it glamorous. Michael Douglas has said…

"because even though the film is critiquing that it can't help but also make it glamorous."

Honestly, they don't try hard not make it look glamorous. This extravaganza is totally part of what makes people watch it.

Re: Fake it till you make it: the wolves of Instagram

#19

Maybe it’s time the EU took a look at advertising. I mean, we’re building things like the GDPR and a lot of legislation to protect minors from the dangers that come from social media. We see loot boxes, underage gambling, traders selling you recommendations for their own products, scammers, young people prostitute them selves to get photo shoots at exotic locations or for luxurary stuff for likes. Probably worse than…

> young people prostitute them selves to get photo shoots at exotic locations or for luxurary stuff for likes

So what's the alternative, working 9-5 in retail for minimum wage and after 10 years you are still nowhere?

Unless you are in a highly demanded domain like software, there are few opportunities for young people.

Re: Fake it till you make it: the wolves of Instagram

#20
post #4

One thing I've been struck by with movies and films like the Wolf of Wall Street, the film Wall Street, Fight Club, or even the Great Gatsby is how many people end up coming away with the exact opposite message of the movie. They end up idolizing the vapid, shallow lifestyle that the movie is critiquing, because even though the film is critiquing that it can't help but also make it glamorous. Michael Douglas has said…

Scarface may be the the epitome of that for me, but on the other hand Tony Montana was pretty successful up until the very end of the movie.
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