Yesterday a16z published an article featuring NYU Professor of Design, AI and Media Theory Ruby Thelot, who argues that “enshittification” is a false concept. Thelot claims technology platforms are not getting worse after locking in users. Instead, she says people use social media more than ever and report being satisfied with it.
The theory of platform narcissism
Thelot describes enshittification, a term coined by Cory Doctrow, as a misdiagnosis of what she calls “platform narcissism.” She suggests older users and western geriatric millennials selfishly believe platforms should cater to their needs even though they have aged out of them. These users should be focused on raising their children. The platforms remain popular and well liked, but primarily by younger people using Instagram or those in different countries and contexts. Thelot adds that the theory allows users who should log off an excuse to stay on platforms because it is fashionable to hate them. They spend time there but claim they are trapped.
“Perhaps the reason why the platform seems worse is because your life has changed,” Thelot says. “Over the same period of time, your goals have changed, and they no longer fit with the platform’s new features. Why the hell would a fifty-five year-old be watching Reels? Go take care of your kids.”
Market data and user numbers
The indisputable fact of Thelot’s argument is that various social media platforms have more users and are more profitable than ever. This data is readily available from reliable market surveys, polls, and quarterly earning reports from the companies themselves. It is important to note that companies like Meta have a history of juking the numbers. Despite this, Meta recently reported its first ever decline of 20 million users. Thelot’s point stands: Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok are massively popular.
I will also cosign Thelot’s advice that people should log off. There are many reasons why some people can’t, present company included, but it is never not good advice and even if you have to be on social media you can probably reduce your time scrolling.
Survey results on app performance
Thelot’s argument falls apart when he tries to prove people are actually satisfied with their time on these platforms. To prove this, he points to research from American Customer Satisfaction Index, a private company which surveys customers’ satisfaction with various products and services. In its ACSI Entertainment Study 2026 it surveyed 30,886 customers and found that overall satisfaction with social media rose by 1 percent to a score of 75 out of 100. If satisfaction with social media is rising instead of falling and does not have a terrible score, it is doing the opposite of enshittifying and people do not actually hate it, he argues.
Here are the type things customers are asked to evaluate with a score of 0-100 in the survey this rising satisfaction score for social media: “Quality of mobile app, reliability of mobile app (minimal down time, crashes, lags), loading speed and reliability, ease of navigation, ease of using the site on different devices, speed and reliability of video clips, variety of services and information, freshness of content, relevance of content, ability to use site without disruption, personal relevance of ads seen.”
Customers scored all these aspects of social media highly (between 68 and 84), and I agree with their evaluation. Instagram loads really fast. I can scroll videos on TikTok very quickly. I watched one YouTube Short about Warhammer 40,000 lore, and then was served more than a dozen other YouTube Shorts about Warhammer 40,000 lore that were both fresh and relevant. I do not contest any of this and I do not think that is why both my friends in the DSA and my Trump supporting family members agree that Instagram is bad.
If we wanted to find out why Americans have negative feelings about social media or why we think these platforms are enshittifying, we might ask questions like: Does using Instagram make you feel good? Do you think children younger than 13 should have unlimited access to TikTok? Has Facebook been a net positive for your family?
Public trust and societal impact
Let us look at some other data. A recent survey from The Searchlight Institute found that voters “overwhelmingly believe social media has a negative impact on society.” Last year, an Emerson College poll found that Americans have low confidence in information they get from social media and that social media platforms are most responsible for the creation of “fake news.” In 2021, the Cato Institute found that 75 percent of Americans do not trust social media to make fair content moderation decisions. In August, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found that three in five Americans support stronger oversight of social media companies. 35 percent said social media stressed them out. 52 percent said they spend too much time on social media. A Pew poll in July found that 6 in 10 Americans supported a social media ban for kids under 16.
These opinions, especially as they relate to the impact social media has on younger people, has nothing to do with how fast videos load on Instagram or how effective the ads are. The apps function well technically and the ads are making money, this is self-evident and the reason we have a problem. The reason people feel like social media is enshittifying is that these companies promised to connect people across the world but in reality have chased engagement, catering to basest the human urges to hold our attention. Kids especially feel socially pressured to use these apps because that is what every other kid is doing and where they feel their community is. It is such a clearly awful and obvious result of the way these apps have enshittified that in August Meta agreed to pay $17 billion dollars in penalties and finally curb the most dangerous aspects of its platforms over claims it endangered children.
People need to be on Linkedin to find jobs. Municipalities and news organizations share important updates on social media first. You might be pulled onto Facebook or WhatsApp against your will because your local school or community of parents congregate there. That does not mean they like it. It is possible to hate something with your entire being and still participate in it.
There are Warhammer and cute cat videos, but every scroll is a spin of a slot machine that cycles between hate, fear, jealousy, disgust, and horniness. We all see it and no amount of pro big tech propaganda, funded by the same firm that invested in these companies is going to convince anyone otherwise.
What it means
For people making things, the practical takeaway is that technical performance and ad relevance do not address the core complaint. Users may tolerate fast loading speeds and relevant ads because they need the platforms for work or community. However, the underlying frustration stems from how the platforms prioritise engagement over user well-being. This dynamic creates pressure on younger users and drives public calls for stricter oversight. The recent penalties against Meta reflect a growing consensus that financial success and technical reliability are not enough to justify the harm caused to society.
