In a digital ecosystem that relentlessly creates, extracts and stores, the notion of a disappearing text is very appealing | Samantha Floreani

What Will Remain of Us Online?

What will be left of us online after we’re gone? For me, I hope it’s a collection of hot selfies, sassy tweets, and maybe even some writing that made people think (or at least, angry in the comments). But the reality is that so much of the trails we leave online aren’t up to us.

Perhaps that’s why digital ephemerality – material existing online only briefly – is so alluring. In a digital ecosystem that relentlessly creates, extracts, stores and monetises our data, it’s no wonder that the notion of temporary content is appealing. There’s a certain sense of freedom in the knowledge that things won’t last forever.

Disappearing Messages and Digital Ephemerality

Many of my friends live far away, so our friendships are almost entirely online. Our chat – sometimes meaningful, often mundane – documents the daily rhythms of our lives, flowing through networks and leaving a trail of seemingly endless upward-scrolling through text bubbles, emoji reactions, photos, and countless hours of monologising voice notes. Almost the entire lifespan of our friendships could be documented and searched. But it’s not. It disappears after four weeks. That’s because we’ve decided to turn on one of my favourite app settings: disappearing messages.

Disappearing messages is a feature offered by apps like Signal and WhatsApp, giving users the option to have conversations that self-destruct. They’re not the only platforms that have tapped into the allure of digital ephemerality. The very premise of Snapchat is that content is only viewable for a short window; Instagram stories similarly vanish after 24 hours. Those who are chronically online may remember the last day of X’s own foray into expiring content called “fleets”, when countless users threw whatever remaining posting-caution they had to the wind to share revealing, horny or outright unhinged posts for one final hurrah before the feature itself vanished. I can’t tell you what people posted or link you to evidence of this because, well, it’s gone.

You just had to be there.

The Appeal of Disappearing Messages

And that, to me, is part of the appeal of disappearing messages. I don’t catalogue every moment spent with loved ones when we’re together in the physical world, and there is something powerful about applying the same approach to my online life.

Mark Zuckerberg was right in saying that “not all messages need to stick around forever.” If only he could extend this kind of thinking to unpick the deeply privacy-invasive and data-exploitative business model that underpins his digital empire.

The Challenges of Disappearing Messages

This points to an important caveat: just because content disappears for users doesn’t necessarily mean companies aren’t hanging on to it. For example, Instagram came under fire when it kept deleted photos and messages on its servers. This is partly why we can’t place all of the burden upon individuals to protect their own privacy – no matter how many privacy settings you change, companies that turn a profit on surveillance will continue to exploit data as long as they can get away with it.

Despite my love for disappearing messages, I’m also sentimental. I care about preserving memories. Sometimes it saddens me to think of the countless messages that have been lost into the automated abyss. And yet, it seems to me that logging everything might make nothing particularly special. Plus, it’s disturbing to consider how our careless digital exhaust is clogging up servers in massive data warehouses and contributing to significant environmental damage.

The Power of Deliberate Preservation

Using disappearing messages forces me to be deliberate about what to keep. Rather than outsourcing my memory-making to digital intermediaries, or relying on the assumption that I’ll always be able to search through the catalogue of my life, I have to preserve my digital life in a way that is meaningful.

And this isn’t just personal. Despite the feeling that everything on the internet lasts forever, this often isn’t the case. Groups like the Internet Archive are doing important work building public digital archives.

Of course, there is complexity here. For some, chat logs can be an immensely useful memory aid; a tool to assist social interaction and enable recall. There are also situations in which records of conversations are useful or even necessary for transparency, accountability and as evidence of wrongdoing. I have written about the tensions between protecting privacy and the challenges of not having a digital trail when seeking justice.

It’s not always easy to know what to remember and what to

SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

• SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure
• SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities
• SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production
• SDG 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

• SDG 9.4: Upgrade infrastructure and retrofit industries to make them sustainable
• SDG 11.4: Strengthen efforts to protect and safeguard the world’s cultural and natural heritage
• SDG 12.5: Substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling, and reuse
• SDG 16.10: Ensure public access to information and protect fundamental freedoms, in accordance with national legislation and international agreements

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

• Indicator for SDG 9.4: Proportion of industries upgraded to sustainable practices
• Indicator for SDG 11.4: Number of cultural and natural heritage sites protected and safeguarded
• Indicator for SDG 12.5: Amount of waste generated per capita
• Indicator for SDG 16.10: Number of individuals with access to information and freedom of expression

4. Table: SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

The article addresses or connects to multiple SDGs, including SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure), SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production), and SDG 16 (Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions).

Based on the article’s content, specific targets under these SDGs can be identified. For SDG 9, the target is to upgrade infrastructure and retrofit industries to make them sustainable (Target 9.4). For SDG 11, the target is to strengthen efforts to protect and safeguard the world’s cultural and natural heritage (Target 11.4). For SDG 12, the target is to substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling, and reuse (Target 12.5). For SDG 16, the target is to ensure public access to information and protect fundamental freedoms, in accordance with national legislation and international agreements (Target 16.10).

The article mentions or implies indicators that can be used to measure progress towards these targets. For SDG 9.4, the indicator is the proportion of industries upgraded to sustainable practices. For SDG 11.4, the indicator is the number of cultural and natural heritage sites protected and safeguarded. For SDG 12.5, the indicator is the amount of waste generated per capita. For SDG 16.10, the indicator is the number of individuals with access to information and freedom of expression.

Overall, the article highlights the importance of sustainable practices, protection of cultural and natural heritage, waste reduction, and access to information and freedom of expression in the digital age. These issues are relevant to the Sustainable Development Goals and their corresponding targets and indicators.

Behold! This splendid article springs forth from the wellspring of knowledge, shaped by a wondrous proprietary AI technology that delved into a vast ocean of data, illuminating the path towards the Sustainable Development Goals. Remember that all rights are reserved by SDG Investors LLC, empowering us to champion progress together.

Source: theguardian.com

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