The broken promise of video

Video is the defining medium of the decade, but the platforms are built for addiction and ad revenue, not storytelling. TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram dictate format, pace, and who sees your work while keeping your audience for themselves. Meanwhile, trust is eroding. Whistleblowers revealed how financial incentives drive algorithmic decisions at Meta and TikTok, with safety subordinated to growth. But people are moving. Blue Sky gained 43 million users in a year. Substack crossed 5 million paid subscriptions. Video podcasts are exploding, with YouTube now the biggest podcast platform on Earth. The pattern is clear: people want direct, intentional relationships with creators. Every platform reflects the culture of its builders. Musk turned X into a political megaphone with zero AI guardrails. Zuckerberg chose to flood Instagram with AI content competing against real creators. What happens if you build with different intentions and perspective. Published on Subwave https://subwave.app/@paul/post/the-broken-promise-of-video