PSA: My hot take on old forum anonymity being better

Back then, you could post anything without a name attached. People say trust comes from profiles, but I find no names gets realer replies. Anyone have a similar view?

3 comments

Log in to join the discussion

Log In

3 Comments

bettyt407mo ago

Totally agree with that! @ericmason mentioning that podcast really hits home. I remember posting on some no-name boards years back and it felt like people just said what they meant without worrying. Now with profiles it's like you're always performing a little bit.

6

tyler67mo ago

Yeah, the "always performing" bit feels a little strong. Even on those old boards, you were still trying to be the funny guy or the smart one for that little group. @ericmason is right about a username starting a brand. I had a dumb screen name in 2004 and I'd still get mad if someone called me out for a bad take. It's just a smaller stage now, not a totally different play.

8

ericmason7mo ago

Read a podcast once where a host argued anonymous forums got people to drop their public persona. She said a username already starts building a brand, which changes how you post.

5