Louise Pieterse

The feature is on the outrage economy. Please answer in your area of expertise: Content Creator / Influencer 1. When did you first notice that controversial or provocative content performed better than everything else you were posting? 2. Is there an unspoken pressure within the creator community to lean into outrage even if it goes against your values - and what happens to creators who refuse? 3. Have you ever posted something specifically designed to provoke a reaction, and how did that feel afterward? 4. Do you think most influencers using ragebait are doing it cynically and deliberately, or do you think many of them have just been conditioned by the algorithm without realizing it? Social Media Strategist / Digital Marketing Expert 1. From a purely strategic standpoint, how much more does outrage-driven content outperform positive or neutral content in terms of reach and engagement? 2. Are brands and advertisers aware that their ads are often running alongside ragebait content, and do they care? 3. How much of what we see in our feeds is the result of deliberate algorithmic choices versus organic user behavior? 4. If a platform wanted to genuinely reduce ragebait, could they do it technically, or would it cost them too much money? Platform Ethics Researcher / Tech Critic 1. Is the outrage economy something that emerged naturally from user behavior or is it something that was essentially designed into these platforms from the beginning? 2. Social media companies always say their algorithms are neutral - is that true, or is outrage literally built into how engagement is measured and rewarded? 3. What accountability do platforms like Meta and TikTok currently have when it comes to the emotional harm caused by ragebait content and is it enough? 4. What would regulation of the outrage economy actually look like, and is any government close to getting it right? Media Economist 1. Can you walk us through exactly how money is made from ragebait content - from the moment someone rage-clicks to the moment an influencer gets paid? 2. Who are the biggest financial beneficiaries of the outrage economy - is it the influencers, the platforms or the advertisers? 3. Is there any financial incentive for platforms to clean up ragebait content or does the money always win? 4. Could the outrage economy ever collapse under its own weight - is there a point where audiences burn out, and the engagement model stops working?