I'm in a place where WhatsApp is everywhere - "call/text me" is basically assumed to mean call or send me a message on WhatsApp.
But, somehow I don't view it as a "cultural force" the way other social media sites are.
I guess because it's just people talking/chatting/sending-pics with their contacts, so there's no algorithm driving/changing peoples' behavior. It's like the cultural force of everyone having cell phones with free (and improved) SMS (which of course is a big change in society).
I've also never used WA to meet people, engage with strangers, or try to impress strangers. It's just people I've met in real life.
Although, a lot of this article is about the broadcast and "channels" features that I don't really use.
WhatsApp is basically a conduit or utility at this point. It's a more usable layer on top of raw TCP/IP. Its completely unlike any of the social media services, even telegram.
I agree, there is nothing cultural about it. I think its because there are no "discovery" features. You cant search for groups or people or whatever. You need to know someone well enough that they have your mobile number, in order to invite you to social groups etc.
The cultural aspect is that I can't really extend my refusal to use Meta technology to WhatsApp because so many family members and important family data are only available via WhatsApp.
How is it different to Telegram? Telegram has some discovery features but they are extremely poor, to the point I still only find out about groups when people send me a link.
That's pretty much how Telegram works. Technically you can search public groups but the search function doesn't really work so you can't find anything without a link.
There are stories like on FB and Instagram. Also, you don't need to know all the people you communicate with - there's often groups for clubs, schools, events, etc.
But, somehow I don't view it as a "cultural force" the way other social media sites are.
I guess because it's just people talking/chatting/sending-pics with their contacts, so there's no algorithm driving/changing peoples' behavior. It's like the cultural force of everyone having cell phones with free (and improved) SMS (which of course is a big change in society).
I've also never used WA to meet people, engage with strangers, or try to impress strangers. It's just people I've met in real life.
Although, a lot of this article is about the broadcast and "channels" features that I don't really use.