Your anger is being monetized

Something I noticed this week

People are dramatically more hostile in digital interactions than they are face-to-face.

The same person who politely disagrees with you over coffee will tear apart your opinion in a comment thread. Someone who's pleasant at work becomes combative on LinkedIn. Friends who are supportive in person become argumentative over text.

Digital communication strips away the humanity that naturally moderates our responses. No facial expressions, no tone of voice, no shared physical space that reminds us we're talking to another human being.

We respond to avatars and usernames as if they're not connected to real people with feelings, families, and bad days just like us.

Something worth remembering

Anger spreads faster than any other emotion online.

Research shows that angry content gets shared, clicked, and engaged with more than positive or neutral content. Outrage literally travels at a higher velocity through social networks than joy, inspiration, or useful information.

This isn't an accident. Platforms optimize for engagement, and anger is highly engaging. The algorithm doesn't care if you're happy or furious—it cares if you're active.

Every time you engage with angry content, you signal to the algorithm that you want to see more of it. Like feeds like. Anger feeds anger.

Something to try

The 24-hour rule before responding to anything that triggers you.

When you feel the urge to fire off an immediate response to something that made you angry, frustrated, or defensive, save it as a draft instead of posting.

Wait 24 hours. Then read what you wrote.

Nine times out of ten, you'll either delete it entirely or completely rewrite it with a clearer head.

The internet is permanent, but emotions are temporary. Your angry response might feel justified in the moment, but it will be there forever while your anger fades within hours.

Something to think about

What if social media algorithms profit from your outrage?

Every angry post you write, every heated argument you join, every outrageous article you share generates data, engagement, and ad revenue for platforms.

Your anger has been monetized. The madder you get, the more money someone else makes.

This doesn't mean never having opinions or never disagreeing with anything. It means recognizing when your emotional responses are being exploited by systems designed to keep you scrolling, clicking, and engaging.

The most radical act online might be staying calm.

Until next time,

Raihan | Mindful Maven