Talk to strangers about influencers

Your feed is a bubble built specifically for you, so everyone around you is watching roughly the same people. A stranger elsewhere follows a completely different set of creators — which is the only easy way to find out what the internet looks like from outside your own algorithm.

• Creators you genuinely respect and why
• The most overrated person on your feed
• Whatever drama is currently unavoidable
• Sponsorships, undisclosed ads and where the line is
• Which platform is actually worth the time now

• “A creator you genuinely respect?”Use this
• “Most overrated influencer alive?”Use this
• “Platform you waste the most time on?”Use this
• “Who is big where you are that nobody else knows?”Use this
• “Would you ever try making content yourself?”Use this
• “How much screen time are we admitting to?”Use this

• Ask who they actually watch rather than who is famous. The creators someone follows day to day say more about them than the biggest names do.
• Talk about the business side: sponsorships, burnout, what makes a creator trustworthy. Most people have opinions on it and rarely get to share them.
• Ask whether they have ever tried creating. Plenty of people have a dormant channel or a page they started once, and those stories are usually funny.

Avoid sharing your handle or asking for theirs to “support each other”; it removes the anonymity that keeps chat here safe. Gossip about real people drifts into rumour quickly, so stick to what is public. Be wary of anyone promoting a follower-growth service or a brand deal that asks you to pay first.