What are the reasons for the low engagement on this platform?

[anon90220889]

After browsing and engaging on this platform for a few hours, it became apparent that it is not as active as we had imagined, especially considering the environmental, social, and geopolitical turmoil being live-streamed. Why is this the case?

[Kees]

I share this concern/curiosity

I think the reasons are:

1. The Zeitgeist film series were released more than 10 years ago, the hype train is over. The film series were the driving force behind the momentum. Peter Joseph (the director behind the film series) hasn’t released a new film like Zeitgeist since. There is a new one coming though. But I doubt it will cause as much hype as the first 3.
2. Many people were onboard because of anti-establishment sentiment. TZM is not a movement like that. Some still cause such noise. Which created a bad name for TZM, but also causes confusion. Some think TZM is a conspiracy group or anti-establishment movement. We’re not. When most of those people left, the movement shrank as well.
3. Unreachable goals, some people seemed to be locked on big projects, that for obvious reasons would not work out and then they lost their motivation.
4. There is not enough attention for the decentralized nature of TZM. The people in charge of the social-media, and thus the exposure, don’t promote self-leadership. This was different in the past and caused a more diverse back and forth of activity. Now the TZM socials only broadcast, but don’t seem to create an atmosphere to also receive.
5. The Internet has changed. People are more distracted with short attention span entertainment on social-media and are busy fighting each other in the comment section A forum like this works, but it has less momentum nowadays because that addictive ingredient and drama is missing.

There are ways to resurrect the movement, to a certain degree. If the active people invest about one hour per month on their local chapter (no rush). Such as setting up a website, organize people, mingle with like-minded people and do some social-media exposure about this work and share the progress with the movement in Reports. It will not be like the old days, but it doesn’t have to be. We need quality, not quantity.

That’s described in the chapters guide:

TZM chapters guide TL;DR

Introduction This guide is part of the community maintained wikis on this forum and is therefore independently developed and unofficial. In general it’s based on the 68 page long TZM chapters guide 2.0 made in 2012 and the experience gained by activists over time. This TL;DR[1] version of the 2.0 guide is written to be short and concise, for more elaborate information the 2.0 version is still recommended. Starting Activism for The Zeitgeist Movement (TZM) can be overwhelming. Wher…

[anon90220889]

Thank you for your insights.

We were inspired to re-engage with TMZ after recently listening to Peter Joseph’s Revolution Now! podcast series and reading his book, The New Human Rights Movement. We understand that the way forward NOW is through action, combined with advocacy and activism.

Furthermore, we find that anonymous profiles are problematic in a forum of this nature. We also believe that this forum could support the creation of meaningful global communities of practice and resource networks. We appreciate that trust can be earned through engagement; however, this initially requires trust from new members in the community.

Within the context of the mainstreaming of the metacrisis, we should anticipate a surge in the need for organisation, engagement, and activism towards meaningful action.

Even though this forum is not as active as it could be, a significant amount of work has gone into its development, which is a testament to what is possible with focused effort. Is this your work, @Kees?

[Kees]

@anon90220889

Furthermore, we find that anonymous profiles are problematic in a forum of this nature

Is it? I don’t mind. In the end it’s about what someone contributes. Can you maybe give examples why anonymity could be an issue?

@anon90220889

We also believe that this forum could support the creation of meaningful global communities of practice and resource networks

People are free to start such projects in their chapter, which of course is encouraged

Global chapters & introduce yourself

Global TZM chapters map The map below lists all active chapters of The Zeitgeist Movement (TZM). This unofficial map is maintained by the community and is part of the Support infrastructure on this forum. Introduce yourself! Reply in this thread and specify the following so we may also add you to the map: Define the scope of your chapter: local (e.g. a city or university campus), regional (e.g. a state or province), or national. Provide a website or social-media page where people can contac…

@anon90220889

We appreciate that trust can be earned through engagement; however, this initially requires trust from new members in the community.

This forum makes use of trust levels. Based on that people get more access, features and privileges on this forum. When in trust level 0 (TL0) there are extra checks enabled for auto moderation, anti-spam and things like that. It will help scale the forum as well. And people with higher trust levels are basically soft moderators. And everyone can flag posts. So trust is earned and secured, in a nice community way.

@anon90220889

we should anticipate a surge in the need for organisation, engagement, and activism towards meaningful action.

This is therefore covered. But on a daily average there are 10 unique logged in users and a few dozen regular visitors. And as you can see, if only one of those logged in users starts to make some noise, activity sparks. So I thank you for that

@anon90220889

which is a testament to what is possible with focused effort. Is this your work, @Kees?

I indeed manage and develop this forum. But 99,9% of the development is done by the Discourse project. Which is used by many communities around the world:

Discourse Discover

[anon90220889]

We can appreciate that you don’t have a problem with anonymity, since you have an anonymous profile Anonymity suggests a lack of trust, faith and confidence in the movement. Why have you chosen to be anonymous?

[Kees]

@anon90220889

Why have you chosen to be anonymous?

Why do you think I’m anonymous? I use my real name, that cartoon avatar is me. Our profiles are quite similar in that regard.

But I don’t see why it would be a problem to be anonymous. Just because you perceive it as a lack of trust doesn’t mean that’s the intend. Some people might just not like their name to be indexed in search engines so that people can just search their thoughts on the Internet. Or perhaps they just like to have a different name online because it’s more playful or better suited to the context of where they signed up. There are many reasons, privacy might be the most obvious one. And privacy is a right and at the core of a free speech society. I don’t see any reason why anonymity would make TZM less effective. For sure it wouldn’t affect the engagement on this forum

[anon90220889]

Thanks for the feedback @Kees. We respect your views and position on this. A point to note is that our profile is not similar to yours in that we use our full name, and it links to our Linktree. Be this as it may, we understand your position, and it would be interesting to hear what others have to say on this topic?

[Kees]

Where does anonymity ends in that regard? Does it end with putting your full address in your profile and social security number? I’m just teasing, but I don’t really see why it’s relevant.

[anon90220889]

The relevance - Is this a game, or are we trying to make a significant impact?

[Kees]

People can address me as Kees (my real name) and can get in contact with me through my local chapter in the Amsterdam area (which is the website featured on my profile). Just as many other people here are linked to a local chapter. There is a connection with the real world.

[anon90220889]

This will be our last post on this issue, and which we share in the interest of building community.

"Anonymity in activist forums can have several drawbacks that may hinder the effectiveness and integrity of the movement. Here are some key reasons:

1. Lack of Accountability: When individuals are anonymous, it becomes difficult to hold anyone accountable for their actions or statements. This can lead to reckless behavior and the spread of misinformation.

2. Trust Issues: Anonymity can breed distrust among members. Without knowing who they are interacting with, participants may be skeptical about the intentions and credibility of others.

3. Reduced Commitment: People are generally more committed to causes when their identity is known. Anonymity can lead to a lack of personal investment and responsibility, which can weaken the overall commitment to the cause.

4. Difficulty in Building Relationships: Activist movements often rely on strong interpersonal relationships and networks. Anonymity can make it challenging to build these connections, which are crucial for coordinated efforts and solidarity.

5. Potential for Infiltration: Anonymity makes it easier for adversaries or malicious actors to infiltrate the group, gather information, or disrupt activities without being easily detected.

6. Reputation Management: Prominent leaders and public figures can attract attention and support for a cause. Anonymity prevents the emergence of such figures, which can limit the movement’s ability to gain widespread recognition and influence.

While anonymity can provide safety and protection, especially in oppressive regimes, it also comes with significant trade-offs that can impact the effectiveness of activist forums."

Source: Conversation with Copilot, 31/08/2024

[Kees]

@anon90220889

Lack of Accountability: When individuals are anonymous, it becomes difficult to hold anyone accountable for their actions or statements. This can lead to reckless behavior and the spread of misinformation.

We have rules on this forum and moderate accordingly. Accounts can be muted or banned for a time period. This can also be done on IP level.

@anon90220889

Trust Issues: Anonymity can breed distrust among members. Without knowing who they are interacting with, participants may be skeptical about the intentions and credibility of others.

The trust-levels and badges show someones reputation on this forum. And people can sign-up for their chapter which is a place where people meet face to face. So there is a connection to the real world.

@anon90220889

Reduced Commitment: People are generally more committed to causes when their identity is known. Anonymity can lead to a lack of personal investment and responsibility, which can weaken the overall commitment to the cause.

If someone wants that, they can use their real name.

@anon90220889

Potential for Infiltration: Anonymity makes it easier for adversaries or malicious actors to infiltrate the group, gather information, or disrupt activities without being easily detected.

This forum is public, all information is public. Except for the chat, for that you need TL1. But also that is not considered private, chats can also be exported as a forum thread, making it fully public.

@anon90220889

Reputation Management: Prominent leaders and public figures can attract attention and support for a cause. Anonymity prevents the emergence of such figures, which can limit the movement’s ability to gain widespread recognition and influence.

It can also have the opposite effect

And again, this forum is focused on chapter building, where people meet in person. So once that connection is established people can share personal contact information.

[anon90220889]

Ok @Kees, we will leave it at this then. Thanks for your feedback and efforts. We wish you all the success with your forum.