I'm fully cognizant of how subtle the sleight of hand is--the goal goes from "let me talk to people" to "give me something to talk about." But I'm convinced it's a toxic one, one that has created the empire of data capitalism of the day and one that has turned social media into a corrupting influence that is less about connecting in genuine relationships and more about producing content that your "friends" (or other users) will like and engage with.