Talk:Dead Internet theory/Archive 1

This is an archive of past discussions about Dead Internet theory. Do not edit the contents of this page. If you wish to start a new discussion or revive an old one, please do so on the current talk page.

Archive 1

Relevance of music removals

@SoundEnman1: and I seem to be reverting one another repeatedly at Dead Internet theory, so I think it's time to bring this here per Wikipedia's WP:BRD policy so there can be some resolution on this.

An explanation for why I've been removing it: I've been removing the music stuff because it simply has nothing to do with the Dead Internet theory. Yes, it's artificial manipulation of the sort the Dead Internet theory discusses, but there is no mention of the Dead Internet theory or anything like it in the source given, and therefore nothing to link it to this article. Connecting the two is simply original research, which is not allowed on Wikipedia.

SoundEnman1 has also been changing the wording "conspiracy theory" to just "theory". However, the use of "conspiracy theory" is directly supported by the sources I've given, per the verifiability policy.

@SoundEnman1:, would you like to put forward your rationale for your edits? I'd also be interested to hear what other editors have to say. — The Anome (talk) 10:12, 13 March 2023 (UTC)

Hello, nice to finally get a chance to talk to you. My first time on this Talk function, so let's see if I use it correctly. Removal of the music section is a good point, that can moved somewhere. But I would still prefer it's called a "theory" but itself. I looked at the sources and it's just an opinion of the author without any proper evidence. "Conspiracy theory" is often haphazardly thrown around whenever (1) because it's trendy to explain something unexplainable as that and/or (2) authors employ it as clickbait. "Theory" is better in my opinion because it's neutral and doesn't have the baggage that's associated with "conspiracy." SoundEnman1 (talk) 12:35, 13 March 2023 (UTC)

@SoundEnman1: Hi. It's good to talk to you too. I think that's a reasonable compromise; leave "conspiracy" out, and remove the music stuff, and I'd be happy to go with that. The music stuff certainly belongs somewhere in another article, or might even merit an article itself if it's sufficiently notable.

The thing I find fascinating is that what makes the Dead Internet theory appealing is that it is actually partially true -- a significant amount of the activity on the Internet is now inauthentic and machine-generated, as part of the interlocking and self-reinforcing feedback loops of the advertising/SEO/content-farming/article-spinning/bot/propaganda ecosystem -- but not nearly as much as the theory suggests. — The Anome (talk) 07:16, 14 March 2023 (UTC)

I think the fake music traffic is actually a perfect illustration of how the theory is partially true, but it needs to be explicitly linked in the writing of the article. In my experience, that kind of thing is done on Wikipedia all the time without the need for the reliable source to make the connection for us. And in general, I would like to see this entry expanded, because the explanations of it that exist online are all poor, compared with the obvious power of the original idea, as evidenced by how far it has spread from its origins and how often it comes up. Planetjanet (talk) 02:19, 16 April 2023 (UTC)

The linked article does not state that 7% of Spotify’s catalogue was removed… it states that 7% of music created via Boomy was removed from Spotify. Am I misreading this article? If not, the statements made in this Wikipedia entry are incorrect, and much smaller in nature than stated. 99.132.121.117 (talk) 05:29, 18 May 2023 (UTC)

Expanding this article and adding additional sources

I have seen a lot of talk online about this topic, and seen multiple youtubers cover it. With that said, looking online there is not a ton of high quality sources on it. I attempted to add a few along with a small section of added text, but it needs more.

I suggest that sections for "Key arguments"/"Claims," "Criticisms," and "In Popular Culture" be added. If necessary, I believe the Bigfoot article is really good while handling a conspiracy type topic, and could serve as an outline. GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 00:03, 19 May 2023 (UTC)

GeogSage, I also saw this phenomenon being discussed in a YouTube documentary and I was planning on writing this article last year but didn't have the time due to other projects. I actually saw several big name newspapers discuss it and many listed crucial aspects of the conspiracy theory not mentioned anywhere in this article, such as the fact that Google Search says that there are millions of results but only shows around 40 (forty) and it keeps showing the same few (top) results over and over and over again. There are quite a number of phenomena described by the DIT that should be listed but haven't been included in the current form of the article. Here is The Atlantic' "Maybe You Missed It, but the Internet ‘Died’ Five Years Ago - A conspiracy theory spreading online says the whole internet is now fake. It’s ridiculous, but possibly not that ridiculous?" By Kaitlyn Tiffany which discusses a number of things related to it as well.
Of course, this page will likely naturally grow due to additions in time, but I just noticed that the current article states that the conspiracy theory exists but doesn't go into the strengths of why rational people could believe it. -- — Donald Trung (talk) 19:55, 4 June 2023 (UTC)

Probably non-notable

I had considered creating this article myself earlier this year because the topic is quite interesting, and the Atlantic article seemed a promising source to base the page on. However, I could not find another usable source beyond this, and looking at the sources in the article at present I don't think they're enough to meet the general notability guideline – they're either dubiously reliable blogs or merely rehashing the Atlantic piece. – Teratix ₵ 15:28, 6 June 2023 (UTC)

I think it just barely scrapes by. VintageVernacular (talk) 17:21, 7 June 2023 (UTC)

Same. It has some traditional media coverage, and a quick search of the rabble that is the internet shows that there is some cultural interest around the idea (again, not trying to cite YouTube creators for notability, just pointing to the volume of videos as an example of this topic likely being of interest to people). There is just barely enough traditional reliable media to scratch by in my opinion. If in a few years there is not any additional traditional reliable media sources, then we can look again at questioning notability. GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 19:12, 7 June 2023 (UTC)

I agree there is some cultural interest in the idea, which is why I haven't immediately gone to AfD but raised this more informal concern instead. However, if an editor with a stricter view on notability came along and sought to delete this article, I don't think the current sources would be enough to justify its survival. – Teratix ₵ 07:41, 10 June 2023 (UTC)

The cultural notability I think is important. Looking at the page views is a bit surprising, people are clearly interested in this topic and it is important that sources exist that explain the topic in a way that isn't as sensationalized as YouTube. I have added a few more sources, and a bit more material, hopefully this helps verification a bit.

Twitter has at least one more subtopic that can be mentioned. I am considering deep diving YouTube, and Facebook literature to see if there is anything down those rabbit hole. GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 16:53, 17 June 2023 (UTC)

"Conspiracy Theory"

How can something be conspiracy without any claim of Party A conspiring with Party B? Nothing in the article suggest there is thought to be more than one organization working together unbeknownst to the public. 2604:2D80:DE09:D400:29D8:559:91E0:94AE (talk) 23:09, 6 August 2023 (UTC)

In the lead of the article it says "These intelligent bots are assumed to have been made, in part, to help manipulate algorithms and boost search results in order to ultimately manipulate consumers. Further, proponents of the theory accuse government agencies of using bots to manipulate public perception. The date given for this "death" is generally around 2016 or 2017." GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 02:59, 7 August 2023 (UTC)

It seems like it has or will shortly become reality, and is no longer a theory or conspiracy. Maybe this page could cover the distribution, proof of personhood, consumption of human content vs synthetic media in the future? Wesxdz (talk) 21:32, 22 August 2023 (UTC)

I agree it isn't a conspiracy theory, whoever made this article is just trying to smear the idea by calling it that. I have changed the first paragraph to be more accurate in this way. DavidMalcolm1212112221 (talk) 12:05, 25 October 2023 (UTC)

The sources state that this is a conspiracy theory. The most heavily cited article on this page from "the Atlantic" opens with the line "A conspiracy theory spreading online says the whole internet is now fake. It’s ridiculous, but possibly not that ridiculous?" I have my own opinions on this as well, and some additions I've tried to include here have been (correctly) removed because they were my own notion of the theory did not exist in reliable print sources (it entered my mind in a YouTube video and I didn't realize it WASN'T a main part of it). This was specifically in regards to Link rot.

Belief that the dead internet theory is no longer a conspiracy and will shortly become reality is fine, but including it on this without a source is original research. On a page like this, it is important to maintain a neutral point of view, and fall back on sources when in doubt. As the sources say conspiracy theory, and mention specifically who is doing the conspiring (ad agencies, corporations, governments), our opinions do not matter. Please, cite a source specifically stating it is not a conspiracy theory if you would like to make that claim.

It is important to note that a conspiracy theory is "an explanation for an event or situation that asserts the existence of a conspiracy by powerful and sinister groups, often political in motivation, when other explanations are more probable.." The Dead Internet Theory asserts that many powerful and potentially sinister groups are working towards this end, some with political, and others with profit, motivations. The "more probably" explanation could be that this is a biproduct of ease of computer automation and that the governments and corporations are not actively trying for this result. It could have other explanations as well. The Oxford definition given in the conspiracy theory article is "the theory that an event or phenomenon occurs as a result of a conspiracy between interested parties; spec. a belief that some covert but influential agency (typically political in motivation and oppressive in intent) is responsible for an unexplained event." This leaves out the negative connotation or qualifier that other explanations are more probable. The label applies.

The important If you have an opinion on this, and can publish it in a reputable source, we can site it. Unfortunately, the term is used by the best source, so it is used here. GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 18:04, 25 October 2023 (UTC)

Articles cited in this Wikipedia page that refer to the Dead Internet Theory as a "conspiracy theory.":

Did A.I. just become a better storyteller than you?
Maybe You Missed It, but the Internet ‘Died’ Five Years Ago
Is the internet secretly dead? Plus: bots and bye-byes on our final episode
THE INTERNET IS DEAD: THE TRUTH BEHIND THE DEAD INTERNET THEORY
Conspiracy Theorists Says The Internet Has Been Dead Since 2016

GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 18:20, 25 October 2023 (UTC)

FirstName BunchOfNumbers

@Thenintendoxtream Posted a section titled "FirstName BunchOfNumbers" under the "Twitter" subsection. This text section is citing Know Your Meme and primary sources, and does not explicitly link to the Dead Internet Theory. I'm posting the text by Thenintendoxtream I reverted below for discussion. To include it, please find a reliable source that discusses the phenomena IN THE CONTEXT OF THE DEAD INTERNET THEORY.

"Referring to a catchphrase used to describe a phenomenon that occurs on Twitter.^[1] The phrase reflects the commonly held belief that default Twitter handles using the format "First Name" followed by a series of digits are can be assumed to be bot accounts. The specific phrase "FirstName BunchOfNumbers" originated from a tweet^[2] by user @wuooods on April 19th, 2020. The user tweeted, "Hello my name is Firstname Bunchofnumbers and i have some incredibly shitty opinions," and received over 20,000 likes and 5000 retweets in two years. On August 31st, 2020, tech writer Darius Kazemi published a blog post on his website "Tiny Subversions"^[3] with the title "On Twitter usernames with lots of numbers." The article discussed the reasons as to why there was a sudden uptick in Twitter users with the username format "FirstName BunchOfNumbers," outlining a 2017 change in Twitter account policies. An excerpt from the entry reads, "The thing is, since at least as far back as December 2017, the Twitter signup process has not allowed you to choose your own username! It instead gives you a name based on your first and last name, plus eight numbers on the end. You aren't prompted to pick a more distinctive username after that, and you can change it but you need to figure out how to do it yourself. (The December 2017 date was confirmed to me privately by someone who works at Twitter Design.)" On December 19th, 2020, Twitter^[4] user @Carolin64723572 posted a tweet announcing Tier 4 quarantine for London a few days ahead of Christmas 2020. The announcement was made from reputed journalist Caroline Wheeler's^[5] temporary account, the username of which followed the FirstName BunchOfNumbers format, leading people to question the validity of her claim. On May 14th, 2022, Parag Agrawal, the at the time CEO of Twitter, posted a thread addressing concerns about the supposed saturation of Bot accounts on Twitter. He used the term "FirstNameBunchOfNumbers" in a tweet^[6] that received over 2000 likes and over 200 retweets, further legitimising the term. By 2022, the use of the phrase "FirstName BunchOfNumbers" had entered Twitter users vocabularies as a way to refer to Bot accounts or simply to refer to older, less tech savvy Twitter users with inflammatory opinions. The screenshot of the original tweet by user @wuooof is often used in response to tweets made by FirstName BunchOfNumbers accounts. Twitter users have also come to associate accounts with a username following this format with conservative ideas. For instance, Twitter^[7] user @GidMK posted an edit of the original @wuooof tweet to comment on the saturation of supposed Bot accounts promoting the use of horse-dewormer Ivermectin as a Covid-19 cure."

^ "FirstName BunchOfNumbers". Know Your Meme. 2022-03-20. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
^ "https://twitter.com/wuooods/status/1252051656344317953". X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 2023-10-30. {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
^ "On Twitter usernames with lots of numbers". tinysubversions.com. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
^ "https://twitter.com/Carolin64723572/status/1340288874472493059". X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 2023-10-30. {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
^ "https://twitter.com/cazjwheeler". X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 2023-10-30. {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
^ "https://twitter.com/paraga/status/1526237587936989184". X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 2023-10-30. {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
^ "https://twitter.com/gidmk/status/1447165724577841161". X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 2023-10-30. {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)

GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 19:05, 30 October 2023 (UTC)

This is original research, but my experience as a Twitter user is that "firstname bunchofnumbers" does not refer to suspected bots, but rather to elderly and not-internet-savvy users who don't know or care enough to change their handle from the default. I doubt you'll find a source connecting it to the dead internet theory — Preceding unsigned comment added by 73.198.146.55 (talk) 03:56, 11 January 2024 (UTC)

Origin

I know there isn't really a way to prove this, but I was an avid user of 4chan back in the late 2000s, and I remember a popular type of trollpost was to say something like "Everyone on the internet is a bot except you. Prove me wrong." and people would jokingly try to either confirm or disprove the statement. It was seen as a playful exercise in online solipsism. The article says that this originated in the early 2010s, but I am 100% sure it started in the late 2000s (around 2006-2008). Again, I have no way of proving this. Noxteryn (talk) 19:28, 2 February 2024 (UTC)

I remember similar posts on other websites as well, but we need reliable sources that document the joke AND link it to the dead internet theory. Just because the joke was made does not mean it is actually related to the topic. If you can find a good source (not "Know your Meme") that discusses those jokes and explicitly links them to the development of the dead internet theory, then by all means add it! Unfortunately, anything else would be original research. GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 02:52, 3 February 2024 (UTC)

Kaitlyn something something

Why is the opinion/commentary of a staff writer at a magazine relevant? I feel tempted to delete it.

Leaving aside the authority argument, she's not even specialized in the subject Ariodant (talk) 15:38, 6 February 2024 (UTC)

Her article in the Atlantic is likely the best source for this topic online. It is also the article that seems to have brought the topic into the "mainstream" media. Many of the other sources have called back to it even if they build upon it. It was important to describe the conspiracy aspect of the theory, and the quote was a good contribution. GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 16:44, 6 February 2024 (UTC)

Re-read article and the exact quote in it comes from Caroline Busta, "the founder of New Models, a pro-complexity media node for the critical analysis of art, tech, politics, and pop culture." I have fixed the text of the article to reflect the source of the quote. GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 16:59, 6 February 2024 (UTC)

Artificial influencers and the dead internet theory

A publication titled "Artificial influencers and the dead internet theory" was published this month in "AI and Society." This is a Springer peer-reviewed journal, even if the article itself may not be peer-reviewed (I'm not sure if this was subject to review as it is described as a "opinionated column on trends in technology, arts, science and society, commenting on issues of concern to the research community and wider society."), and a bit higher quality then a lot of the news ones we have so far. I included it in the lead sentence already, but believe that some content can be pulled from this and used to improve the article overall. I removed one source that was redundant and replaced with this one.

Just thought I'd point this out here in case anyone wants to take a look and see what they think can be added from here. GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 16:51, 8 February 2024 (UTC)

Is IFLScience a reliable source?

IFLScience published an article on February 1, 2024 title "Dead Internet Theory: According To Conspiracy Theorists, The Internet Died In 2016." This article has some content that could be used to improve the page, but I'm not sure of the consensus of the source reliability. Media Bias factcheck gave them a "high credibility rating" and stated:

"Overall, we rate IFL Science as pro-science and Left-Center biased based on editorial positions that routinely favor the left. We also rate them High for factual reporting due to proper sourcing and a clean fact-check record."

Is there any precedent on using IFLScience? I don't see them on Wikipedia's Wikipedia:Reliable sources/Perennial sources. GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 04:52, 26 February 2024 (UTC)

Possible source: "The Church of the Serpent: The Philosophy of the Snake and Attaining Transcendent Knowledge"

The book "The Church of the Serpent: The Philosophy of the Snake and Attaining Transcendent Knowledge" has content related to the dead internet theory. I'm not sure how reliable this is as a source, or if it could be included in the "in popular culture" section at all. GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 16:47, 1 March 2024 (UTC)

This is not a conspiracy theory

Literally look at any website or social media, SEO optimized websites are literally written by bots. Why is this considered a conspiracy theory? Maybe the real psyop is to make us believe this theory is not real... Majaretas (talk) 20:44, 9 January 2024 (UTC)

There is a talk section on this already. Much of the content on this topic is from less then credible sources like YouTube and self published blogs. When it comes to reliable sources, the literature is a bit thin. Of the articles that have been cited on the page, at least five use the term conspiracy theory to describe it:

Did A.I. just become a better storyteller than you?
Maybe You Missed It, but the Internet ‘Died’ Five Years Ago
Is the internet secretly dead? Plus: bots and bye-byes on our final episode
THE INTERNET IS DEAD: THE TRUTH BEHIND THE DEAD INTERNET THEORY
Conspiracy Theorists Says The Internet Has Been Dead Since 2016

Therefore, the wording here reflects the language used by these sources. GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 21:43, 9 January 2024 (UTC)

What is a conspiracy? It's a secret group making a plan, generally for their own interest? This theory does not require a conspiracy between ANYONE. It's just an observation of the state of the internet. The use of the term "conspiracy" here is completely inappropriate. 75.157.105.81 (talk) 04:58, 11 March 2024 (UTC)

The use of the word "conspiracy" is based on the sources. From what I've read, the "dead internet theory" as a conspiracy theory goes far beyond "a lot of content is bots." The theory preposes that numerous coordinated actors are working towards that goal. Within the text it states "Proponents of the theory believe these bots are created intentionally to help manipulate algorithms and boost search results in order to ultimately manipulate consumers."

It also includes the quote "The U.S. government is engaging in an artificial intelligence powered gaslighting of the entire world population." These are your agents.

Regardless, the fact remains the majority of the sources we have used for verification of the topic refer to the dead internet theory as a conspiracy. If you disagree with the word choice, Wikipedia is not the place to have that battle, as that would be a violation of Wikipedia:No original research. GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 05:21, 11 March 2024 (UTC)

That's ONE interpretation of the theory. The other interpretation, sources for which can be easily found, gives a multitude of reasons behind this that requires no conspiracy at all. For example, the simple VERIFIABLY TRUE acts of search engine optimization for advertising revenue, as well as bots spamming controversial comments to drive engagement, can be pointed to as the prime examples of the theory, and neither of these can be called a conspiracy.

"Proponents of the theory believe these bots are created intentionally to help manipulate algorithms and boost search results in order to ultimately manipulate consumers" Do you genuinely believe that this satisfies the definition of conspiracy? That some companies are trying to make money through advertising revenue and thus do things like this to drive engagement?

"the fact remains the majority of the sources we have used for verification" Found the problem. The majority of the sources YOU have used. Sounds to me like you already believe that the conspiracy angle is an appropriate way to frame the theory, so using that preconceived bias, you fell into confirmation bias.

Sources deserve to be questioned. 75.157.105.81 (talk) 05:56, 12 March 2024 (UTC)

I believe that the majority of the citations used for verification use the term conspiracy theory, and as things are subject to interpretation, to avoid violating the policy around original research, we default to what the outside sources say. GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 07:40, 12 March 2024 (UTC)

Why have those specific citations been chosen? 75.154.224.75 (talk) 07:33, 15 March 2024 (UTC)

I have spent a significant amount of time hunting down citations that mention the dead internet theory in reliable sources. Some that I thought were good, such as the Forbes article "The Dead Internet Theory, Explained" were removed because the consensus was they weren't reliable.

In terms of reliability, there is only one paper in a peer-reviewed publication I've found that discusses it. There is one book I've seen too that seems pretty good. However, the article that seems to have made the topic "mainstream" is the one in the Atlantic, and it is cited by many of the other sources used here. Most of the sources call it a conspiracy theory, or don't call it anything, and that is the problem. GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 08:10, 15 March 2024 (UTC)

Definitely an example of citogenesis if I've ever seen one. Atlantic calls it a conspiracy theory -> Wikipedia calls it a conspiracy theory -> other articles call it a conspiracy theory.

I've not found any peer-reviewed papers except the one already in the article, but there is also a journal article and a dissertation, neither of which hold the contempt for the theory that the Atlantic does.

I'm not arguing that the term conspiracy theory shouldn't appear on this page though. In my opinion, there are two aspects to Dead Internet Theory:

1. That the majority of the internet interactions is now performed by bots (essentially true, and provably so)

2. That the reasons for this are ... (mostly baseless conspiratorial speculation)

So I'd propose changing the lead to something like "The dead Internet theory is the idea that the Internet now consists mainly of bot activity and automatically generated content, marginalizing organic human activity. Proponents of the thoery propose this is done by a conspiracy of corporations to manipulate customers or by governments to manipulate public perception". //Lollipoplollipoplollipop::talk 10:05, 15 March 2024 (UTC)

I really don't think this is an example of citogenesis from Wikipedia, the sources used for initial verification were using the term.

I found that masters thesis a while ago when looking for sources. Wikipedia has some criteria around reliable sources, and they specifically mention dissertations and masters thesis. They can be used with extreme caution, and I did not think it met the minimum requirements really, specifically " Masters dissertations and theses are considered reliable only if they can be shown to have had significant scholarly influence," and this one has not. In many cases, thesis are essentially a self published piece even if they have some theoretical checks by advisors. This one looks particularly bad in my opinion. First, it is citing this Wikipedia page, and as someone one who wrote a lot of this page I'm a bit horrified by this. I don't want to be overly harsh to this thesis, but the section discussing the Dead Internet Theory is not really what I consider objective, well written, well sourced, material. It is essentially the authors opinion on the topic, complete with rhetorical questions asked of the reader and loaded language dismissing points the author disagrees with. The thesis cites the Atlantic article and the Swaddle, which could have been used instead of the Wikipedia page. It is clearly not in agreement with the Atlantic, but clearly the Swaddle doesn't align with this author either.

In the Swaddle article, it states:

"The “dead internet theory” was a fringe conspiracy, but it contains some nuggets that feel true to our age"

It also goes on to state:

""The U.S. government is engaging in an artificial intelligence powered gaslighting of the entire world population,” said a user on Agora Road, who pioneered the theory itself."

This shows a common thread going back to the origin of the theory, it was always tied to government and corporate entities intentionally doing this. The Swaddle article cites the Atlantic article as well. What seems to confuse people is that "The Dead Internet Theory" is referring to a very specific thing, not just "That the majority of the internet interactions is now performed by bots (essentially true, and provably so)." Multiple sources address this.

The Jstor article you cited is from The New Atlantis (journal), and "The journal is editorially reviewed, however is not peer-reviewed on scientific topics." While it might not "hold the contempt for the theory that the Atlantic does" (I disagree with this statement, I have read all these articles at least once and don't think the Atlantic article holds contempt for the theory), it uses the word "conspiracy" to refer to the theory, and calls believers "conspiracy theorits" in the conclusion. The New Atlantis article states the following:

"This is the world of the Internet after about 2016 at least according to the Dead Internet Theory, whose defining description appeared in an online forum in 2021. The theory suggests a conspiracy to gaslight the entire world by replacing the user-powered Internet with an empty, AI-powered one populated by bot impostors. It explains why all the cool people get banned, why Internet culture has become so stale, why the top influencers are the worst ones, and why discourse cycles seem so mechanically uniform. The perpetrators are the usual suspects: the U.S. government trying to control public opinion and corporations trying to get us to buy more stuff.

The Dead Internet Theory reads like a mix between a genuinely held conspiracy theory and a collaborative creepypasta-an Internet urban legend written to both amuse and scare its readers with tales on the edge of plausibility. The theory is fun, but it's not true, at least not yet. With Al-powered tools soon running in everyone's pocket, the story of the Internet as a sterile realm of bots in human guise will become downright persuasive, and possibly true. Does it have to be this way?"

Reading the journal article, they use the dead internet theory to make predictions about 2026, and in the conclusion refer to believers in the theory as "conspiracy theorists":

"Alas, even with all silver linings accounted for, it will still be a dead Internet, only not quite as bleak as the conspiracy theorists predicted."

Fundamentally, the sources I've read have overwhelmingly used the word "conspiracy theory" to describe the dead internet theory. There are a few sources that don't, but other then the masters thesis don't really take a position on the issue. GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 03:30, 17 March 2024 (UTC)

Adding back content.

Undid two revisions that removed substantial content from cited articles. To address one edit summary, the Atlantic article states "Caroline Busta, the Berlin-based founder of the media platform New Models, recently referenced it in her contribution to an online group show organized by the KW Institute for Contemporary Art. “Of course a lot of that post is paranoid fantasy,” she told me. But the “overarching idea” seems right to her." This is where the content in the lead came from.

The next point, the discussion of the "I hate texting" tweets is a major point within the Atlantic article. This article serves as one of the main sources for the page. GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 19:40, 19 February 2024 (UTC)

thanks for the clarification, I think I tried to Find In Page "Caroline Busta" on the article but neglected to notice that the majority of text was behind a login window at the bottom of the page, my mistake Equirax (talk) 00:47, 18 March 2024 (UTC)

Citing the original thread

The dead internet theory originated in an online thread, should it be cited as a primary source? link. GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 17:10, 17 March 2024 (UTC)

This can't be the origin as the OP in that thread refers to the date 2018. You can find older mentions of it on archives of /x/. For example here is thread about "empty internet theory" posted on 09/19/2017. 75.172.99.98 (talk) 02:07, 22 March 2024 (UTC)

To my understanding, the thread in my link is an archive of the original. I base this on the Atlantic article GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 02:16, 22 March 2024 (UTC)

While that is a source for the Atlantic article, the thread refers to a news article from 2018 which shows that it is not the origin of the theory as I have shown a thread from 2017 of people talking about the theory. 75.172.99.98 (talk) 02:46, 22 March 2024 (UTC)

The term "Dead Internet Theory" was used to refer to a conspiracy theory, but is no longer

Yeah I know this topic has been covered but I wanted to add my input.

Definitions change over time. It is clear that Dead Internet theory started as a speculative and outlandish conspiracy theory circa 2016 but now is used largely to refer to the observable proliferation of bot-generated content on the Internet. To be clear: I am not purporting that the original theory has been proved correct - I am saying that the term is now rarely used with reference to the original conspiracy theory.

The conspiracy theory origin of the term is well-documented and should remain in the article, but the definition given in the article's current form does not reflect the most popular contemporary use of the term, which does not presuppose any conspiratorial element.

Here are some sources:

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2024/apr/30/techscape-artificial-intelligence-bots-dead-internet-theory "The theory wasn’t wrong – it was just too soon" [...] "In 2021, the internet felt dead because aggressive algorithmic curation was driving people to act like robots. In 2024, the opposite has happened: the robots are posting like people."

https://www.forbes.com/sites/danidiplacido/2024/01/16/the-dead-internet-theory-explained/?sh=72eef9b957c2 "The [original definition] was written back in 2021, before the commercial release of ChatGPT and before AI became such a hot topic (although it was always a subject of speculation and discussion). Now, the theory has become something of a meme and semi-ironic description of the internet."

https://www.independent.co.uk/tech/dead-internet-web-bots-humans-b2530324.html "In recent months, the so-called “dead internet theory” has gained new popularity. It suggests that much of the content online is in fact automatically generated, and that the number of humans on the web is dwindling in comparison with bot accounts."

I propose a rewrite of the lede (and much of the article) to something along the lines of "The dead Internet theory is term most commonly used to refer to the proliferation of AI-generated content on the Internet. Originally a conspiracy theory asserting that the Internet had been entirely replaced by bot activity manipulated by algorithmic curation, the term has been repurposed in recent years to refer to the observable increase in content generated via LLMs such as ChatGPT appearing in popular Internet spaces" Gravyd2 (talk) 09:32, 7 May 2024 (UTC)

If you look above, there is a discussion on getting this change made that I started a while ago. Some issues I've run into so far.

First, the Forbes article was included by me as a source a while ago. On February 9th 2024, that source was removed by another editor. This was based on the Wikipedia:Reliable sources/Perennial sources that states "Editors show consensus for treating Forbes.com contributor articles as self-published sources, unless the article was written by a subject-matter expert."Most content on Forbes.com is written by contributors or "Senior Contributors" with minimal editorial oversight, and is generally unreliable." I don't know how that consensus was reached, but the article listed is one of these senior contributor pieces which fall into the category "generally unreliable."

The Guardian article doesn't redefine the full theory and is ambiguous on if the Internet is already dead, or if it is still approaching but "too soon." It also doesn't say it wasn't a conspiracy theory, just that it "wasn't wrong," and explicitly uses the word "conspiracy theory" to describe it without ever saying it isn't one. We have a lot of sources that are saying it is a conspiracy theory, or not saying anything at all, and nothing that clearly says "now is used largely to refer to the observable proliferation of bot-generated content on the Internet."

Independent is a good possibility for beginning to address the definition change to "much of the content online is in fact automatically generated, and that the number of humans on the web is dwindling in comparison with bot accounts." The problem here is that the Independent article didn't say that was all the theory suggested, or mention that it has been redefined in recent years. An omission of the full definition is not evidence of a completely new one. This is the best step towards what I'd like to see on the page though.

The lead section you're proposing is a synthesis, which is original research. No source says: "The dead Internet theory is term most commonly used to refer to the proliferation of AI-generated content on the Internet." Most sources call it a conspiracy theory. I think we can start to work on the second half though with the article in the Independent to say "the term is sometimes used to describe the phenomena where AI generated content surpasses human generated content online." I've added some text to the lead and "Origins and development" section that incorporates the Independent article and some of what you suggest.

Please keep looking for sources like this! GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 17:52, 7 May 2024 (UTC)

Thanks for the input! I'll try and keep track of new sources to support this, then. Gravyd2 (talk) 13:21, 8 May 2024 (UTC)

On the use of the term Conspiracy theory: Citations needed for section discussing the use of the term to describe "A lot of bots online"

I'm seeing a lot of media on YouTube and Reddit discussing the DIT. These sources tend to use it to describe the internet being more bots then humans, what has been called "the inversion" on YouTube. In the citations we have, the DIT is more then just bots on line, and the word "conspiracy theory" is used. This is causing some issues as users who are seeing the term used online to describe the increase in AI generated content and bot activity do not think it necessary is a "conspiracy theory," because they aren't using it in that context.

Unfortunately, I can not see any reliable sources that specifically say "the DIT has now come to be used by some to refer to the increase in bot and algorithm content, dropping the need for a group of conspirators in government or corporations." Without such as source for that statement, it is original research. A source that says "I think the DIT is true, it's not a conspiracy" can be interpreted to just be conspiratorial thinking if it isn't clearly separating the term.

I think a section detailing this would be meaningful, but I don't have any sources for it that I'm comfortable using. Until we do, the current sources say what they say (hate to be a wet blanket). If anyone stumbles upon strong reliable sources backing up this change in word usage, please add it and we can collaborate to bring that into the page. GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 17:19, 29 March 2024 (UTC)

https://www.unsw.edu.au/newsroom/news/2024/05/-the-dead-internet-theory-makes-eerie-claims-about-an-ai-run-web-the-truth-is-more-sinister Freavene (talk) 08:08, 21 June 2024 (UTC)

Adding an image of "Shrimp Jesus"

I was wondering what the best way to go about this would be. There are many AI images of "Shrimp Jesus" online but I don't know the copyright on them. Would generating an original one as an example be appropriate? How could we source one of the popular ones? GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 17:35, 22 June 2024 (UTC)

Copyright can be a little sketchy because AI images are considered copyrighted to the creator in some regions, and we won't know where a genuine found example would have been generated. Creating an original version sounds like the way to go, so long as it looks similar enough to the kind of aesthetic that was or is going around on Facebook. Belbury (talk) 08:39, 1 July 2024 (UTC)

File:Shrimp Jesus example.jpg has now been generated and added to the article. Belbury (talk) 15:49, 10 July 2024 (UTC)

lead rewrite

Currently the articles starts by saying the dead internet theory asserts the net is overrun by bots and automated content. But you can believe this without subscribing to the conspiracy theory!

The pertinent part, that should be front and center, is the belief this was intentionally done to manipulate the population. THAT's the conspiracy theory - not merely asserting that bots exist or that automated content is spamming the web.

I suggest you rewrite the first sentence to make this clear, perhaps with:

The dead Internet theory is an online conspiracy theory that asserts that bot activity and automatically generated content manipulated by algorithmic curation was created intentionally to manipulate the population with minimal organic human activity.

Currently the two steps "bots exists" and "here's why" form two separate sentences, without it being super clear both are needed to describe the article subject.. 84.217.39.2 (talk) 19:50, 11 July 2024 (UTC)

The whole conspiracy part should be a sub section. Dead Internet in itself is more of a phenomenon than anything else. 2607:FA49:7362:7500:FC2B:3161:CAD4:53AF (talk) 13:53, 13 July 2024 (UTC)

The "Dead internet theory" as defined by a plethora of sources is a conspiracy theory. The idea that it is just describing a lot of bots online displacing human content is not unique to it and is not in the literature yet. This would be original research, as stated above, several times. GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 14:53, 13 July 2024 (UTC)

The wider phenomenon of bots masquerading as human internet users seems like it's already covered in the social bot article, if that's worth your focus instead. Belbury (talk) 15:03, 13 July 2024 (UTC)

I have changed the lead a bit based on your feedback. Please let me know what you think and if you have more suggestions. GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 14:58, 13 July 2024 (UTC)

Portions of publication "The Dead Internet Theory: Investigating the Rise of AI-Generated Content and Bot Dominance in Cyberspace" appear loosely reworded from this Wikipedia page.

To avoid a citogenesis incident, I want to point out that the article The Dead Internet Theory: Investigating the Rise of AI-Generated Content and Bot Dominance in Cyberspace seems to be using large portions of text that has been loosely reworded from this Wikipedia page. I would not recommend using this article as a source due to this. GeogSage ^{(⚔Chat?⚔)} 02:15, 4 August 2024 (UTC)

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