How the internet warps our emotions | DW Documentary

00:42:26
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3UVyo01wCk

Resumen

TLDRThe video delves into the phenomenon of emotional numbness prevalent in today's digital society, where technology and social media play significant roles in shaping and manipulating human emotions. The narrator, a documentary filmmaker, embarks on a journey to understand why many people feel emotionally detached, interviewing various individuals including therapists, internet trolls, and content creators. Through these conversations, it becomes evident that while technology can evoke strong feelings, it often leads to a sense of emptiness and disconnection from genuine emotions. The video highlights the impact of effective computing, which aims to influence human emotions, and raises questions about the consequences of living in an increasingly artificial emotional landscape. Ultimately, it suggests that reconnecting with real-life experiences and loved ones may be a way to combat this emotional numbness.

Para llevar

  • 😶 Emotional numbness is a growing concern in the digital age.
  • 📱 Technology manipulates our emotions, leading to detachment.
  • 🧠 Effective computing aims to influence human emotions.
  • 👥 Internet trolls exploit emotional reactions for attention.
  • 💔 Many prefer artificial feelings over real-life emotions.
  • 💡 Reconnecting with loved ones can help combat numbness.
  • 🔍 The centagramraph measures emotions through physical responses.
  • 🎭 Mistress Harley uses technology for emotional control.
  • 🌍 The internet creates a market for every conceivable emotion.
  • 🗣️ Therapists report an increase in clients feeling emotionally flat.

Cronología

  • 00:00:00 - 00:05:00

    The narrator expresses feelings of numbness and emptiness, which they attribute to the influence of technology and social media on emotions. They seek to understand this phenomenon and its impact on society.

  • 00:05:00 - 00:10:00

    The narrator, a documentary filmmaker, decides to explore how technology affects emotions while traveling the world. They aim to uncover the ways in which cutting-edge technology manipulates feelings.

  • 00:10:00 - 00:15:00

    The narrator discusses internet trolls, who have learned to exploit emotional responses for attention and engagement. They meet Andrew, a troll who uses provocative language to elicit reactions from others, showcasing the darker side of online interactions.

  • 00:15:00 - 00:20:00

    In contrast to trolls, the narrator visits a live streaming talent agency in China, where performers like Jean create emotional connections with their audience, highlighting the demand for emotional engagement in the digital age.

  • 00:20:00 - 00:25:00

    The narrator explores the field of affective computing at MIT, where researchers study how technology can measure and influence human emotions. They learn about the potential for technology to manipulate feelings on a large scale.

  • 00:25:00 - 00:30:00

    The narrator meets Mistress Harley, who uses technology to dominate and control others' emotions, revealing a disturbing aspect of emotional manipulation in the digital realm.

  • 00:30:00 - 00:35:00

    The narrator reflects on the pervasive influence of the internet on emotions, speaking with a therapist who emphasizes the struggle people face in creating genuine feelings in a world dominated by artificial emotions.

  • 00:35:00 - 00:42:26

    In the end, the narrator contemplates the possibility of finding real connections and emotions outside of the digital world, suggesting that genuine relationships and experiences can lead to a more fulfilling life.

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Mapa mental

Vídeo de preguntas y respuestas

  • What is the main theme of the video?

    The video explores emotional numbness in the digital age and how technology manipulates emotions.

  • Who are some of the people interviewed in the video?

    The video features therapists, internet trolls, and content creators.

  • What does the narrator seek to understand?

    The narrator seeks to understand the reasons behind emotional detachment and the role of technology in shaping feelings.

  • How does technology affect our emotions according to the video?

    Technology and social media manipulate emotions, leading to feelings of numbness and detachment.

  • What is 'effective computing'?

    Effective computing is a branch of computer science that researches how to influence human emotion.

  • What is the role of internet trolls in emotional manipulation?

    Internet trolls recognize the power of manipulating emotions and often engage in provoking negative reactions.

  • What does the therapist Morton Fanger say about internet addiction?

    He notes that many people prefer the artificial feelings from the internet over real-life emotions.

  • What is the suggested solution for emotional numbness?

    The video suggests reconnecting with loved ones and engaging in real-life experiences to foster genuine emotions.

  • What is the significance of the 'centagramraph'?

    It is a machine that measures emotions based on physical responses, marking the beginning of effective computing.

  • What does Mistress Harley represent in the video?

    She represents the use of technology to control and manipulate emotions on a deeper level.

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Subtítulos
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Desplazamiento automático:
  • 00:00:04
    [Music]
  • 00:00:28
    This is me when I'm feeling Nothing.
  • 00:00:32
    No joy, no sorrow, no pain, just
  • 00:00:36
    nothing. ABC, maybe that's just what
  • 00:00:40
    scrolling on your phone is. But
  • 00:00:43
    according to my therapist, the problem
  • 00:00:46
    is that the numbness is spreading. Okay.
  • 00:00:48
    Yeah. I've been working with patients
  • 00:00:49
    for about 20 years now and formally that
  • 00:00:53
    they come into the the session rooms
  • 00:00:55
    complaining about strong emotions that
  • 00:00:58
    they have this anxiety or the depression
  • 00:01:00
    or feeling abandoned and feeling alone.
  • 00:01:04
    But now they have
  • 00:01:06
    the opposite. They don't feel anything
  • 00:01:08
    anymore. They are what you call it some
  • 00:01:11
    kind of flatliner.
  • 00:01:16
    What is happening?
  • 00:01:18
    It's not just me. So many people sense
  • 00:01:20
    that something is messing with their
  • 00:01:22
    emotions.
  • 00:01:26
    I want to find out why.
  • 00:01:28
    [Music]
  • 00:01:30
    My job is to make prime time science and
  • 00:01:32
    tech documentaries for public
  • 00:01:34
    television. Can you can you guys like
  • 00:01:36
    maybe wear these? Is that like a thing?
  • 00:01:38
    Is that like a thing? For years, I've
  • 00:01:40
    covered stories all over the world of
  • 00:01:42
    tech.
  • 00:01:43
    [Music]
  • 00:01:45
    So, I decide as I travel the world
  • 00:01:48
    reporting on stories about the internet,
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    I'll seek my own answers.
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    I'll film how cuttingedge technology
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    hacks our emotions. Every single one of
  • 00:02:00
    them.
  • 00:02:04
    [Music]
  • 00:02:08
    The phalamus is not consciously
  • 00:02:10
    controlled. Speak response in the brain.
  • 00:02:13
    kiss my who are the people that change
  • 00:02:16
    the way we feel and I'll smash you and
  • 00:02:20
    how can I make myself feel again
  • 00:02:36
    [Music]
  • 00:02:40
    at the dawn of the internet trolls were
  • 00:02:42
    some of first to recognize the power of
  • 00:02:44
    manipulating emotions. While other early
  • 00:02:47
    users of the web saw it as a way of
  • 00:02:50
    exchanging simple information, computer
  • 00:02:52
    call from JD Sumner, Elish,
  • 00:02:56
    the trolls recognized just how powerful
  • 00:02:58
    pushing emotional buttons could be.
  • 00:03:03
    Andrew is a prime example of a
  • 00:03:06
    present-day troll with an almost
  • 00:03:07
    scientific approach to pissing people
  • 00:03:10
    off. All
  • 00:03:14
    right.
  • 00:03:18
    So, I can say something like, um, LOL
  • 00:03:21
    kid. Just throwing in the word kid will
  • 00:03:25
    get their attention.
  • 00:03:27
    Throw in the word baby doll.
  • 00:03:29
    Maybe someday
  • 00:03:33
    you can cook breakfast for me
  • 00:03:38
    in the kitchen. You can do this thing
  • 00:03:40
    where you
  • 00:03:42
    belong.
  • 00:03:50
    He shows me around the adult video shop
  • 00:03:53
    in Orlando, Florida, where he works as
  • 00:03:55
    manager.
  • 00:03:56
    [Music]
  • 00:04:12
    Andrew sees himself as something of an
  • 00:04:14
    expert in channeling anger. To see what
  • 00:04:17
    this could do to someone, I meet with
  • 00:04:19
    Kim.
  • 00:04:21
    She had been personally trolled by
  • 00:04:23
    Andrew for more than a year. Um, I met
  • 00:04:27
    him online uh in a Facebook chat room
  • 00:04:32
    and he was trolling everyone and playing
  • 00:04:34
    tricks on everyone and just trying to
  • 00:04:37
    get a negative reaction out of the
  • 00:04:39
    group. Do you sometimes feel like your
  • 00:04:42
    emotions are just being totally messed
  • 00:04:45
    with? Yeah, it's just it's so
  • 00:04:48
    frustrating the way that he just has to
  • 00:04:50
    engage with people by pissing them off,
  • 00:04:54
    offending them. Hey, I was thinking
  • 00:04:56
    let's do another women's march. The last
  • 00:04:58
    one was so effective. What do you say,
  • 00:05:00
    ladies? How about we go out tomorrow and
  • 00:05:03
    march or are you too busy drinking wine?
  • 00:05:07
    Trying to get attention in this way.
  • 00:05:09
    almost drawing power from annoying other
  • 00:05:11
    people and kind of keeping himself in
  • 00:05:14
    your thoughts almost gives him power
  • 00:05:17
    almost dominating.
  • 00:05:20
    [Music]
  • 00:05:24
    This guy did not get enough attention as
  • 00:05:26
    a child.
  • 00:05:34
    Andrew is an OG internet troll. He sees
  • 00:05:37
    himself as an avantguard artist working
  • 00:05:40
    pro bono. But at the same time, other
  • 00:05:43
    parties see the potential capital gains
  • 00:05:45
    of messing with people's emotions.
  • 00:05:50
    In China, I see this become the basis of
  • 00:05:52
    entire industries.
  • 00:06:09
    I enter a large factory complex. The
  • 00:06:12
    hundreds of people working here are the
  • 00:06:14
    opposite of trolls.
  • 00:06:16
    While trolls master anger, these workers
  • 00:06:19
    craft a very different product.
  • 00:06:28
    Chuni Entertainment is a live streaming
  • 00:06:30
    talent agency. From a complex with
  • 00:06:32
    countless fake bedrooms, the company's
  • 00:06:35
    entirely female talent live stream their
  • 00:06:38
    lives 24/7.
  • 00:06:44
    [Music]
  • 00:06:49
    Yo,ch.
  • 00:06:50
    [Music]
  • 00:07:27
    Do you think we can move this a little
  • 00:07:28
    bit to no? Is that okay? Yeah. Jean is
  • 00:07:32
    the biggest star at the Love Factory.
  • 00:07:35
    No makeup. Makeup. Mhm.
  • 00:07:39
    She's a master at making people far and
  • 00:07:41
    wide develop strong feelings for her. I
  • 00:07:44
    want to know how she does it. So, I ask
  • 00:07:46
    her manager, Emma.
  • 00:08:00
    Wow.
  • 00:08:05
    [Music]
  • 00:08:16
    [Music]
  • 00:08:53
    Okay.
  • 00:09:05
    [Music]
  • 00:09:21
    Truly
  • 00:09:28
    for
  • 00:09:47
    [Applause]
  • 00:09:47
    [Music]
  • 00:09:59
    Show Fore
  • 00:10:00
    [Music]
  • 00:10:11
    [Music]
  • 00:10:21
    [Music]
  • 00:10:25
    speech.
  • 00:10:28
    [Music]
  • 00:10:46
    [Music]
  • 00:11:08
    She said,
  • 00:11:16
    "Sorry, my fault."
  • 00:11:19
    [Music]
  • 00:11:21
    Maybe it isn't surprising that there's a
  • 00:11:23
    huge demand to feel loved. But actually,
  • 00:11:26
    it seems there's a market for every
  • 00:11:28
    emotion conceivable,
  • 00:11:30
    even the ones we try to avoid.
  • 00:11:34
    It is true that forces around the world
  • 00:11:37
    are messing with our emotions, including
  • 00:11:40
    some of the most brilliant minds of our
  • 00:11:41
    time.
  • 00:11:48
    I'm at the Massachusetts Institute of
  • 00:11:50
    Technology
  • 00:11:53
    hate
  • 00:12:00
    to see how the world of computer science
  • 00:12:02
    approaches emotion. I meet with Dr.
  • 00:12:05
    Rosalyn Pequard. Can you uh can you show
  • 00:12:09
    me anger now? That's not allowed.
  • 00:12:14
    She's the founder of the field of
  • 00:12:16
    effective computing, a branch of
  • 00:12:18
    computer science that researches how to
  • 00:12:20
    influence human emotion.
  • 00:12:22
    [Music]
  • 00:12:24
    She's showing me a centagramraph, a
  • 00:12:26
    machine that measures your emotions
  • 00:12:29
    based on the way your fingers touch a
  • 00:12:31
    button.
  • 00:12:34
    It's the very first machine ever made
  • 00:12:36
    for measuring someone's emotions. Grief.
  • 00:12:41
    And the first one of these
  • 00:12:43
    represents
  • 00:12:45
    anger invented by the scientist Manfred
  • 00:12:48
    Klein. Number one, the centiggraph
  • 00:12:50
    assumed that the body channeled emotions
  • 00:12:52
    in a universal and measurable way.
  • 00:12:56
    Wow.
  • 00:12:58
    It was one of Rosalyn's inspirations to
  • 00:13:01
    start an entire field of computer
  • 00:13:03
    science. Originally when I defined a
  • 00:13:06
    effective computing, I defined it as
  • 00:13:08
    computing that relates to, arises from
  • 00:13:10
    or deliberately influences emotion and
  • 00:13:14
    more broadly affective phenomenon.
  • 00:13:17
    And when you are crafting the computer
  • 00:13:20
    interaction so that you are mindful of
  • 00:13:24
    the person's affective state, what it's
  • 00:13:26
    likely to be and what you wish it were,
  • 00:13:29
    uh then it's an example of a effective
  • 00:13:31
    computing trying to directly influence
  • 00:13:34
    those emotions with the computing.
  • 00:13:37
    What started with the centagramraph has
  • 00:13:39
    now evolved into endless new
  • 00:13:41
    technologies. The new pupil would get a
  • 00:13:43
    little bit larger. Okay.
  • 00:13:46
    Billions of dollars are being invested
  • 00:13:48
    in the companies that make them. And
  • 00:13:50
    these seven core emotions are joy.
  • 00:13:53
    They're building a future where paying
  • 00:13:55
    customers can see what people are
  • 00:13:57
    feeling at all times. This is the
  • 00:14:01
    future. Everybody is going to read your
  • 00:14:03
    emotions.
  • 00:14:05
    Do you think that now that people can
  • 00:14:07
    measure emotions with such precision
  • 00:14:10
    that more people will mess with our
  • 00:14:12
    emotions?
  • 00:14:14
    People did this before the technology
  • 00:14:16
    too, right? They just watch what
  • 00:14:18
    provokes people. Oo, I like, you know,
  • 00:14:20
    if I pull the girl's hair, does that
  • 00:14:21
    provoke her? No. If I kick her in the
  • 00:14:23
    shin, that provokes her. I'll keep doing
  • 00:14:24
    that. Right? There are people who just
  • 00:14:26
    like to get reactions.
  • 00:14:28
    um now that you can get them at scale.
  • 00:14:41
    I can't help but think that effective
  • 00:14:43
    computing companies have a curious way
  • 00:14:45
    of looking at our emotions.
  • 00:14:48
    One that traces back half a century.
  • 00:14:51
    I look into the very image of modern
  • 00:14:53
    mind control. And maybe it's not so
  • 00:14:56
    scary.
  • 00:14:58
    I asked myself, maybe there's part of us
  • 00:15:01
    that wants to be controlled.
  • 00:15:05
    Sometimes you meet someone who gives you
  • 00:15:07
    a new sense of clarity and perspective.
  • 00:15:11
    I, the one and only tech, the mistress
  • 00:15:16
    of high tech domination.
  • 00:15:19
    Mistress Harley holds the trademark for
  • 00:15:21
    the term tech domination along with
  • 00:15:24
    countless other iterations of the term.
  • 00:15:27
    I'll take care of this right away. Yes,
  • 00:15:29
    you will. I go to Beverly Hills to meet
  • 00:15:32
    her. Good. And grab that along with her
  • 00:15:34
    manservant, Dick Jones.
  • 00:15:37
    [Music]
  • 00:15:40
    From her home, she shows me the
  • 00:15:41
    surveillance footage of the thousands of
  • 00:15:43
    men she controls over the internet.
  • 00:15:47
    She says that you don't need whips and
  • 00:15:49
    chains to truly dominate a human being.
  • 00:15:52
    Through using technology to control
  • 00:15:54
    their emotions, she can dominate people
  • 00:15:57
    on a deeper level than was ever possible
  • 00:15:59
    before.
  • 00:16:01
    Starting with her tool of preference.
  • 00:16:08
    I am Mistress Harley's slave. I'm a
  • 00:16:11
    complete loser. Totally pathetic and
  • 00:16:13
    weak. I do anything Mistress Harley
  • 00:16:15
    tells me to do. Um, if she tells me what
  • 00:16:18
    to eat, if she tells me to make
  • 00:16:19
    confessional video, she controls what I
  • 00:16:21
    wear, so she doesn't let me wear clothes
  • 00:16:23
    when I'm home. Um, she makes me wear
  • 00:16:25
    this collar. Um, she controls my
  • 00:16:28
    privacy, so she can make me make
  • 00:16:30
    confessional videos. She has cameras in
  • 00:16:32
    my home. She has I have one here in my
  • 00:16:34
    room. I have another one in my bathroom.
  • 00:16:36
    I'm getting one for my living room. So,
  • 00:16:37
    I have no privacy at all. Uh, the only
  • 00:16:39
    freedom I have in my life is stuff that
  • 00:16:41
    she hasn't decide to dictate to me. Um,
  • 00:16:43
    otherwise, I just do whatever she tells
  • 00:16:45
    me to do.
  • 00:16:49
    If you think about the physiological
  • 00:16:52
    sensations of shame or humiliation,
  • 00:16:56
    they're very similar to the same
  • 00:16:58
    physiological sensations of arousal. To
  • 00:17:00
    make somebody feel shame, you need to
  • 00:17:02
    get to know them. Not everybody is
  • 00:17:04
    ashamed of the same things. Some people
  • 00:17:07
    are ashamed of being called a [ __ ]
  • 00:17:09
    Other people are proudly [ __ ] So the
  • 00:17:12
    more you know about someone, the easier
  • 00:17:15
    it is to figure out what they are
  • 00:17:17
    ashamed of. And gathering data on
  • 00:17:21
    someone will give you great insight into
  • 00:17:23
    that. Google knows how to sell you
  • 00:17:25
    peanuts. I know how to make you feel
  • 00:17:27
    bad. You're bad and you should feel bad.
  • 00:17:36
    [Music]
  • 00:17:52
    [Music]
  • 00:18:02
    that it's fascinating. So, uh, a lot of
  • 00:18:05
    similarity, but then a couple of
  • 00:18:07
    interesting individual differences. So
  • 00:18:09
    Ali had the kind of the four the cor
  • 00:18:11
    corugator muscle the for eyebrow plus a
  • 00:18:14
    little bit of the upper eyelid rays very
  • 00:18:17
    strong 23 uh which is that tightening of
  • 00:18:20
    the lip and the buxinator muscle.
  • 00:18:23
    Facial action coding turns emotions and
  • 00:18:25
    feelings into a simple set of numbers
  • 00:18:28
    all discernable through scanning a face.
  • 00:18:32
    [Music]
  • 00:18:37
    It's the cornerstone of tech that reads
  • 00:18:39
    and manipulates our emotions. Joy, love,
  • 00:18:43
    sorrow,
  • 00:18:45
    just a number 20. That's the same for
  • 00:18:48
    everyone in all places and all times. I
  • 00:18:51
    think it's heated because people feel
  • 00:18:55
    that emotions
  • 00:18:57
    are
  • 00:18:59
    sacred qualities of their identity or
  • 00:19:02
    what we used to call the soul. And there
  • 00:19:06
    that
  • 00:19:08
    I am the only one who can be the arbiter
  • 00:19:10
    of the meaning of my emotions. There is
  • 00:19:12
    this feeling like my passions are just
  • 00:19:16
    uniquely who I am. And that's and that's
  • 00:19:19
    sacred. Um, and it turns out that's
  • 00:19:21
    wrong.
  • 00:19:24
    A machine can only understand our inner
  • 00:19:26
    world by reducing it to numbers.
  • 00:19:30
    But I can't help but think it can't be
  • 00:19:32
    right. If our emotions are just numbers,
  • 00:19:36
    then the right formula could make us
  • 00:19:38
    feel anything.
  • 00:19:41
    And we're going to try another pigeon
  • 00:19:43
    now. And uh I will try to pick out some
  • 00:19:46
    particular pattern of behavior and uh
  • 00:19:49
    make it more a more frequent part of the
  • 00:19:52
    repertoire. My thoughts returned to BF
  • 00:19:55
    Skinner. After years of experimenting on
  • 00:19:57
    pigeons, he discovered something.
  • 00:20:00
    Behavior can be molded pretty much any
  • 00:20:02
    way you want.
  • 00:20:03
    [Music]
  • 00:20:08
    You've talked about the need for a
  • 00:20:09
    technology of behavior. Yes. Well, we
  • 00:20:13
    certainly do need one. All the great
  • 00:20:15
    problems today need a behavioral
  • 00:20:18
    solution. How are we going to get people
  • 00:20:20
    to stop breeding so much to cut down on
  • 00:20:22
    the consumption of goods that are
  • 00:20:24
    running? We're running out of supplies
  • 00:20:25
    and so on. Stop polluting the
  • 00:20:27
    environment, stop beating each other up
  • 00:20:29
    personally or uh internationally. And
  • 00:20:33
    so, um, these are all behavioral
  • 00:20:34
    problems and they have to be solved by
  • 00:20:36
    something like a behavioral technology.
  • 00:20:38
    It seems to me he became obsessed with
  • 00:20:40
    creating a machine that could build a
  • 00:20:42
    better world by controlling everyone's
  • 00:20:45
    behavior. A play pen has been selected
  • 00:20:47
    for our experimental environment because
  • 00:20:49
    it is one to which the child is well
  • 00:20:51
    acquainted. The unfamiliar additions
  • 00:20:54
    include a food dispenser loaded with
  • 00:20:56
    snacks.
  • 00:20:58
    The Skinner box was meant to
  • 00:20:59
    revolutionize the raising of children.
  • 00:21:03
    By keeping a child confined to this
  • 00:21:05
    space, they could be connected at all
  • 00:21:07
    times to a powerful technology capable
  • 00:21:10
    of molding their behavior. It is best to
  • 00:21:13
    separately establish the function of the
  • 00:21:15
    light and sound as stimuli which
  • 00:21:17
    reliably signal an upcoming
  • 00:21:19
    reinforcement.
  • 00:21:21
    What if children could always be
  • 00:21:23
    connected to a machine, a device that
  • 00:21:25
    could use light and sound to shape the
  • 00:21:28
    way they act, think, and feel? No
  • 00:21:31
    recurring group of activities
  • 00:21:32
    immediately preceding the action of the
  • 00:21:34
    light and sound is singled out for
  • 00:21:36
    reinforcement in order to avoid the
  • 00:21:39
    building in of an unwanted form of
  • 00:21:40
    behavior.
  • 00:21:42
    Skinner dreamed of a day when this
  • 00:21:44
    technology would take over the world.
  • 00:21:53
    [Applause]
  • 00:21:58
    Maybe Russia wasn't quite what BF
  • 00:22:00
    Skinner was dreaming of.
  • 00:22:07
    [Music]
  • 00:22:14
    [Music]
  • 00:22:37
    Ivonne is the fake name of a social
  • 00:22:39
    media entrepreneur in St. Petersburg,
  • 00:22:41
    Russia.
  • 00:22:43
    [Music]
  • 00:22:50
    [Music]
  • 00:23:00
    Ivonne's main business is the creation
  • 00:23:02
    of Tik Tok content funded by the Russian
  • 00:23:04
    government.
  • 00:23:10
    [Music]
  • 00:23:14
    He shows us some videos that represent
  • 00:23:16
    his work.
  • 00:23:21
    [Music]
  • 00:23:53
    [Music]
  • 00:24:00
    Heat.
  • 00:24:03
    Heat.
  • 00:24:06
    [Music]
  • 00:24:13
    [Music]
  • 00:24:32
    [Music]
  • 00:24:36
    World of
  • 00:24:42
    [Music]
  • 00:24:57
    for
  • 00:25:03
    [Music]
  • 00:25:10
    life.
  • 00:25:13
    [Music]
  • 00:25:15
    Good night. Good night.
  • 00:25:17
    [Music]
  • 00:25:52
    I feel like I've hit a dead end.
  • 00:25:54
    Everyone I've met seems to be perfectly
  • 00:25:56
    happy living their lives on the
  • 00:25:58
    internet.
  • 00:26:00
    Am I all by myself?
  • 00:26:04
    I think maybe I need to talk to someone
  • 00:26:06
    else. So, near where I live in
  • 00:26:08
    Copenhagen, Denmark, I meet with
  • 00:26:10
    therapist Morton Fanger.
  • 00:26:15
    He's one of Denmark's leading experts on
  • 00:26:17
    how the internet affects our emotions.
  • 00:26:20
    He's well known for being passionate and
  • 00:26:22
    committed to raising awareness of the
  • 00:26:24
    issue.
  • 00:26:27
    Nobody attend the real world anymore.
  • 00:26:28
    They prefer this telephone all the time.
  • 00:26:31
    They're just like zombies.
  • 00:26:34
    What should I do?
  • 00:26:37
    Every day, people come in and out of
  • 00:26:39
    Morton's office feeling exactly the same
  • 00:26:41
    way I do.
  • 00:26:44
    Maybe they're better at talking about
  • 00:26:46
    the problems than I am.
  • 00:26:49
    So, is it is it okay for it's okay for
  • 00:26:51
    us to film or would you rather us like
  • 00:26:53
    go outside or
  • 00:26:55
    I'm okay with you staying there. I can
  • 00:26:57
    stay here. Yeah, sure. Okay. Okay. And
  • 00:26:59
    then All right. Yeah.
  • 00:27:02
    You want to Yeah.
  • 00:27:20
    foreign.
  • 00:27:23
    Yeah.
  • 00:27:33
    Uh
  • 00:27:37
    [Music]
  • 00:27:42
    this this in in
  • 00:27:54
    so like how does it happen like why are
  • 00:27:58
    we feeling numb? So you have this
  • 00:28:00
    concentrate of the feeling of joy, of
  • 00:28:03
    anger, of anxiety. Everything is so
  • 00:28:06
    concentrated. The internet creates
  • 00:28:08
    feelings for people. So they just have
  • 00:28:11
    all the feelings served at to them and
  • 00:28:13
    they just have to pick them up and eat
  • 00:28:15
    them. And then after a while, they feel
  • 00:28:18
    empty again. They don't create the
  • 00:28:20
    feelings themselves. They don't know how
  • 00:28:22
    to do it. It's the first time in history
  • 00:28:24
    they have experts to create feelings. So
  • 00:28:27
    you have experts to create feelings on
  • 00:28:29
    the internet and that's the new stuff.
  • 00:28:32
    You're not accustomed to that.
  • 00:28:36
    [Music]
  • 00:28:41
    Do you have some sort of like personal
  • 00:28:44
    reason for your thoughts on the
  • 00:28:46
    internet? the the the job or challenge
  • 00:28:49
    for me as a father is every day is a
  • 00:28:51
    struggle to keep their attention
  • 00:28:54
    by me and getting them connected to me
  • 00:28:58
    instead of being connected to the
  • 00:28:59
    internet. I feel every day I lose every
  • 00:29:03
    day I lose ground to the internet.
  • 00:29:06
    So I feel defeated by the internet. They
  • 00:29:09
    have taken away my children from me.
  • 00:29:13
    They have abducted them or kidnapped
  • 00:29:16
    them.
  • 00:29:22
    I think I finally feel something.
  • 00:29:26
    I feel despair.
  • 00:29:30
    But then I realize
  • 00:29:32
    this feeling is shared by nearly
  • 00:29:34
    everyone I've met.
  • 00:29:38
    We're all exhausted.
  • 00:29:40
    But what about the people who exhaust
  • 00:29:42
    us?
  • 00:29:44
    Back in Florida, I ask Andrew what he
  • 00:29:46
    thinks the reason behind his trolling
  • 00:29:48
    is.
  • 00:29:51
    Do you think there's like something
  • 00:29:52
    behind the trolling?
  • 00:29:57
    I don't know. It's just maybe part of it
  • 00:30:00
    is
  • 00:30:02
    things that I don't want to confront
  • 00:30:04
    about myself or things that I hate about
  • 00:30:05
    myself. I don't know. That does what?
  • 00:30:10
    Uh,
  • 00:30:18
    I don't know. It's hard to explain, man.
  • 00:30:20
    I mean, there's got to be a reason for
  • 00:30:21
    all the trolling, right? Like,
  • 00:30:27
    that's the thing, though. It's like I'm
  • 00:30:28
    not necessarily like super mean to
  • 00:30:30
    anyone.
  • 00:30:40
    I mean, I like getting attention. I
  • 00:30:42
    guess not as much anymore, care as much
  • 00:30:45
    anymore. But
  • 00:30:48
    this might be what messing with other
  • 00:30:50
    people's emotions does to a person. But
  • 00:30:53
    what I'm starting to see is an entire
  • 00:30:56
    world that runs on manipulating
  • 00:30:58
    emotions.
  • 00:31:04
    Sugar treat.
  • 00:31:06
    [Music]
  • 00:31:27
    Make it
  • 00:31:30
    [Music]
  • 00:31:47
    [Music]
  • 00:31:53
    again.
  • 00:32:20
    [Music]
  • 00:32:23
    Yeah.
  • 00:32:25
    I didn't invite you,
  • 00:32:29
    Le.
  • 00:32:31
    Huh?
  • 00:32:37
    [Music]
  • 00:32:46
    [Music]
  • 00:32:53
    Morton, you've been treating internet
  • 00:32:55
    addiction for like 20 years. Is there
  • 00:32:57
    like a big thing that you've learned?
  • 00:33:00
    Biggest horror for me and my profession
  • 00:33:02
    is that when people comes to me to have
  • 00:33:05
    my service, they actually prefer to have
  • 00:33:10
    the internet instead of being alive.
  • 00:33:12
    When they have to do it the feelings
  • 00:33:14
    themselves, it's too difficult. It's too
  • 00:33:16
    hard for them. So they prefer to stay in
  • 00:33:19
    the artificial world with these
  • 00:33:21
    artificial feelings making them feel
  • 00:33:24
    empty.
  • 00:33:27
    People want structure. They want
  • 00:33:29
    control. They want a power imbalance.
  • 00:33:32
    They don't want to be free. They want
  • 00:33:35
    someone to tell them what to do and how
  • 00:33:37
    to do it. And in some ways, there's a
  • 00:33:38
    liberation in submission.
  • 00:33:41
    I see that people prefer to feel
  • 00:33:43
    nothing, to be left without feelings,
  • 00:33:46
    because it's easier. They don't want to
  • 00:33:48
    be in the real world because it's too
  • 00:33:50
    flat. It's too ugly. It's too gray.
  • 00:33:55
    [Music]
  • 00:33:57
    It's a much better life on the internet.
  • 00:34:20
    I can remember a time when I felt things
  • 00:34:23
    stronger than I do now.
  • 00:34:27
    Sometimes when I'm scrolling away on my
  • 00:34:29
    bed, I ask myself,
  • 00:34:33
    is this just how it's going to be now?
  • 00:34:44
    Or is there a way out
  • 00:34:53
    back in Copenhagen? I'm trying to digest
  • 00:34:56
    what I've seen.
  • 00:35:00
    [Music]
  • 00:35:10
    I decide I want to make something nice
  • 00:35:12
    out of everything I've seen.
  • 00:35:16
    So, I invite Morton to my editing suite
  • 00:35:18
    to get some advice.
  • 00:35:22
    Okay. All right. You did all of this,
  • 00:35:25
    all these feelings, all these emotions.
  • 00:35:28
    I'm fascinated about this. Good movie.
  • 00:35:32
    Okay. over there. Propaganda. Tik Tok.
  • 00:35:34
    Oh yes. A huge phenomenon. Tik Tok. What
  • 00:35:38
    is called in in the Chinese version?
  • 00:35:40
    There's another version in Chinese.
  • 00:35:42
    Yeah.
  • 00:35:44
    Yeah.
  • 00:35:45
    [Music]
  • 00:35:47
    I don't know what I learned so much
  • 00:35:50
    during this. I mean, I I went out to
  • 00:35:53
    find all these people and I guess all I
  • 00:35:56
    saw was, you know, that for every
  • 00:35:59
    emotion we have Yeah. There's someone
  • 00:36:02
    really good on the internet at
  • 00:36:05
    manipulating it. Yeah. Some some kind of
  • 00:36:08
    wizard down out there. Yeah. There's
  • 00:36:10
    like a wizard for every emotion. Yes.
  • 00:36:13
    And completely changing the way we feel
  • 00:36:15
    it and overloading us and warping that
  • 00:36:18
    emotion. Yeah. I saw that the the the
  • 00:36:21
    crap on our feelings, they control us
  • 00:36:23
    completely, right? Yeah. And you know,
  • 00:36:27
    you don't think it would be like
  • 00:36:31
    practically and academically sound for
  • 00:36:35
    me to like give this film a happy ending
  • 00:36:38
    in some like a hopeful ending in some
  • 00:36:40
    way.
  • 00:36:46
    Yeah, let me think about it, David. I
  • 00:36:48
    think that there are always two
  • 00:36:50
    opportunities or two ways to go. The one
  • 00:36:54
    way where you change people's
  • 00:36:56
    understanding of the world and the other
  • 00:36:58
    is where you tell them what to do. So
  • 00:37:01
    you can be a prophet saying say no to
  • 00:37:03
    the internet because it will harm you.
  • 00:37:06
    The other way is that we have a much
  • 00:37:08
    better solution. You can have beloved
  • 00:37:09
    ones. You can go out and have feelings
  • 00:37:12
    right now. Just go out. It's so simple.
  • 00:37:15
    It's already the model for a better
  • 00:37:16
    world is to be in the real life. It's
  • 00:37:18
    already there. It's it's for free. You
  • 00:37:20
    just have to be with people you love.
  • 00:37:22
    Just do it.
  • 00:37:39
    [Music]
  • 00:37:42
    I returned to Florida to help Andrew
  • 00:37:45
    pack up his house. He's getting ready to
  • 00:37:48
    drive to Vermont to move in with a
  • 00:37:50
    girlfriend he met on the internet.
  • 00:38:00
    [Music]
  • 00:38:08
    Comes a point in time where you wake up
  • 00:38:10
    next to no one so much that like it's
  • 00:38:14
    becomes like the normal. It's
  • 00:38:16
    comfortable enough, but
  • 00:38:21
    [Music]
  • 00:38:23
    she she actually makes me feel like I I
  • 00:38:26
    deserve somebody so nice.
  • 00:38:29
    The curious thing is that this nice girl
  • 00:38:32
    was not just any nice girl. She was a
  • 00:38:35
    very specific nice girl. This guy did
  • 00:38:38
    not get enough attention as a child.
  • 00:38:44
    [Music]
  • 00:38:57
    Hey,
  • 00:39:11
    I love you. I love you, too.
  • 00:39:16
    Do you see me as like a low down dirty?
  • 00:39:19
    No. No. But I see your social media
  • 00:39:23
    presence and whatnot as slime ball cuz I
  • 00:39:26
    work at a video store. Just sort of
  • 00:39:28
    irritating at points and it's just like,
  • 00:39:30
    come on, man. Just be yourself. Um
  • 00:39:33
    because I know that's not who you are.
  • 00:39:37
    [Music]
  • 00:39:47
    You did it. I'm proud of you.
  • 00:39:51
    Just think if this is the hardest thing
  • 00:39:52
    that you've had to do in your life. It's
  • 00:39:54
    definitely not exactly. So, let's keep
  • 00:39:57
    going. Well, usually the hard stuff has
  • 00:39:59
    a reason. The reason for this, you'll
  • 00:40:02
    find out.
  • 00:40:09
    So close.
  • 00:40:10
    I just don't care about it. Well, what
  • 00:40:13
    do you care about? That's something to
  • 00:40:15
    explore. Can I please not do it? I'll do
  • 00:40:17
    anything else.
  • 00:40:20
    Feeling terrible is like recovering from
  • 00:40:22
    surgery. That's feeling terrible.
  • 00:40:24
    There's nothing you can do about it. You
  • 00:40:25
    can't. There's something wrong with me.
  • 00:40:26
    I'm sick or ill or something, so I can't
  • 00:40:28
    do it.
  • 00:40:30
    You just You just kind You let your mind
  • 00:40:34
    get the best of you. That's fine. I tell
  • 00:40:36
    you, I can't do this. You're I can't do
  • 00:40:38
    this. If you just said, "I can do this."
  • 00:40:39
    And you just took your time and you
  • 00:40:41
    smiled through it, it would be more
  • 00:40:43
    enjoyable. It would move quicker. And
  • 00:40:45
    I'm sorry if being like, "Come on, you
  • 00:40:47
    can do it. Come on, hurry up, is like
  • 00:40:48
    upsetting you, but I just don't know
  • 00:40:50
    how." It's not nothing is upsetting me
  • 00:40:52
    besides the fact that I just don't want
  • 00:40:54
    to do this anymore. I don't know. What
  • 00:40:56
    if Will you do it for me? I guess. Yeah.
  • 00:40:59
    So, come on. Let's go.
  • 00:41:03
    Just a couple
  • 00:41:06
    to put on some speed.
  • 00:41:11
    Follow my lead.
  • 00:41:14
    Oh, how I need
  • 00:41:19
    someone
  • 00:41:21
    to watch
  • 00:41:25
    over me.
  • 00:41:32
    Heat.
  • 00:41:34
    [Music]
  • 00:41:46
    Heat.
  • 00:41:47
    [Applause]
  • 00:41:48
    [Music]
  • 00:42:02
    Won't you tell him please to put on some
  • 00:42:07
    speed?
  • 00:42:09
    Follow my lead.
  • 00:42:12
    Oh, how I need
  • 00:42:17
    someone to watch
  • 00:42:21
    [Music]
  • 00:42:22
    over me.
Etiquetas
  • emotional numbness
  • technology
  • social media
  • effective computing
  • internet trolls
  • mental health
  • emotional manipulation
  • real-life connections
  • therapists
  • digital age