Performative Trad Wife Influencers are Lying
They bury the lede on social media. The truth behind the scenes is so messy
Meta recently announced they plan to suppress accounts on Instagram and Facebook that discuss politics, social justice and commentary. Followers of those accounts will still be able to see the content but these accounts will no longer be recommended or show on the explore page. It’s uncertain how broadly this shadow ban will sweep and who will be included, and if it will also impact hashtags.
The change is a deep reaction to criticism Meta’s received for how it’s handled misinformation. Rather than apply some nuance and better filtration, they’ve opted instead to go broad. This means it will be harder to access conversation around news stories, explore other perspectives, hear from marginalized voices, and access local and breaking news ahead of major media.
The conservative right habitually buries the lede of what they’re selling, hiding the most relevant part of their lifestyle (the results) in promises and pretty ideals.
Taylor Lorenz and Naomi Nix at the Washington Post did a great job pinning the danger of how one-sided this change is, which will hurt those against fundamentalism most.
“The right has really effectively developed content that maximizes the aesthetics of visual-based social media,” [said Emily Amick, content creator], “especially through trad wife influencers. They create content that does not appear to be expressly political, though it has profound political implications.” “Trad wife” is short for “traditional wife” and refers to influencers who create content about homemaking and often weave conservative messages into their content.
Concerns about this possibility are part of the reason I started this column. Substack doesn’t rank and filter with an algorithm. So in addition to the longer format and chance to interact directly with readers, what I’ve found here is a thoughtful home where I can probe and explore the ways fundamentalism has seeped into our everyday culture. Extrapolation is the process of predicting future outcomes based on known facts and I feel naming the context of high-control religion in our society so far is important in understanding what’s ahead.
This news from Meta, especially in an election year, is a serious threat to the free press and our democracy. Anything can and does become “political,” as evidenced by recent shifts from culture-to-politics like Bud Light and Taylor Swift. But it’s also the cornerstone of how the Evangelical Patriarchy works in our political system.
Case in point: the Duggar family and their “Shiny Happy People” lifestyle on TLC while steadily funding conservative Super PACs and running for office with an agenda of Christian dominionism.
(A few of the Duggar articles in the archives)
So, thank you for reading The Anti-Fundamentalist — your support allows me to keep doing this work. But it’s also a healthy defense against suppression to support, share, and participate in work across multiple platforms, so that if a giant power like Meta makes a decision to suppress information, it’s still available somewhere.
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