When content stopped feeling real
The other day, I was watching videos on YouTube, as I’m prone to do, and I came across a video of an elderly man sharing advice to younger generations.
The story was compelling — almost too compelling.
He spoke about how he had worked hard, climbed the corporate ladder and, as a result, had spent too little time with his children. Then, in his 50s, he suffered a heart attack, barely survived, and vowed to completely change his life.
It was a familiar story. And it worked.
The video was well made but — having worked in video production before — I was struck by how every single anecdote in his story had perfect footage to go along with it.
Intrigued, I clicked on the channel’s about page. At the very bottom, I read this:
DISCLAIMER: Individuals in our videos are AI-generated for storytelling. Advice is compiled from real-life experiences. Content is for educational purposes only and should not replace professional guidance.
I read it again.
First confused then angry.
The story I had just heard shattered and I was left with an after-taste of distrust.
Thinking about it, the problem wasn’t that AI was involved — it was that I’d emotionally invested in something that had not been lived. It felt like a perversion of why we tell stories in the first place.
So, even though I’ve no interest to jump on the AI-hate bandwagon, this moment did force me to question my relationship with content altogether.
Like you probably are too, I’m tired of the flood of information that never stops. It’s endless and soulless.
The infinite scroll, the emotional slot machine.
So I’m taking action.
Blocking addictive sites. Curating my feeds. Unsubscribing to things I don’t value highly enough.
The information flood is happening — and I want out.
What I crave is fewer inputs but more presence.
Less reactivity. More reflection.
If this resonates with you, I’d genuinely like to hear from you. How are you dealing with this problem in your life?
And if what I write doesn’t add value to you, feel free to unsubscribe. I’m trying to build something quieter here, not necessarily bigger.
Till next time, I wish you well!
Ben
Would love to hear more about your choices in curating feeds and content. It’s certainly something I resonate with as a way of bringing back our attention. Alongside doing the inner work to find the part of me that gets drawn in.