The world of social media has exploded, leading to the rise of various short content genres, particularly short films. Alongside quality works with humanistic values, a wave of “dirty” content has emerged, causing outrage and anger in the community.
A notable recent short film, with highly controversial content, has garnered a staggering 6.4 million views, raising a painful question: Why do viewers express outrage and insults yet still… keep “grinding” for views relentlessly?
Inappropriate Content
This controversial short film revolves around a story that is said to “upend” basic moral values. The work tells about a young girl who deliberately dresses provocatively. The climax of the plot is her series of hot actions, seducing her paralyzed brother-in-law.
At first glance, this seems to be a script filled with absurdity, contrary to moral norms. The plot is constructed in a bare, illogical way, causing viewers to feel increasingly upset, uncomfortable, and outraged as they watch. The overly exaggerated and unrealistic details are included merely to create drama, pushing the viewers’ emotions to the extreme.
Baiting for Views, Outrage Storm, and Interaction Effectiveness
Despite receiving a “storm” of negative comments, harsh criticism, and even insults, that very outrage has become the most effective “bait”. The production team has tapped into the crowd psychology, as people want to watch to “satisfy” their curiosity, to find evidence to criticize, or simply to see just how “dirty” the content is. The real beneficiaries are the “content creators”. In a short time, the video gathered over 31,000 interactions, 6.4 million views, and hundreds of comments. Notably, the video is still trending, showing no signs of losing its popularity.
Explaining This Phenomenon: Some Main Reasons
Curiosity and desire for novelty: Viewers are always curious about strange things, stories that go against the norm. When content is labeled “shocking” or “inappropriate”, people will seek it out to satisfy their curiosity.
Herd mentality: When content goes viral, whether positive or negative, people tend to want to participate in the discussion. They want to express their opinions and be part of the ongoing wave of controversy.
“Accidental” interactions: Each view, each comment, whether criticism or praise, is counted as an interaction by social media platforms. The algorithms of these platforms recognize this content as “engaging” and “interesting” and continue to suggest it to more users.
Thus, the very outrage from viewers, the critical comments inadvertently help this film spread rapidly. Each view is not a form of support but a reaction; these reactions have turned into a “gold mine” for daring content creators.
This means that we are inadvertently complicit in promoting harmful content, with “dirty short films” flooding the market. It is time to recognize that each view is not just a number, but also an implicit “endorsement”, a vote deciding which type of content will exist and thrive on social media.
The Phenomenon of “Dirty” Short Films Attracting Millions of Views is Not Just a Social Media Issue but Reflects a Concerning Reality
When “dirty” content easily generates profit, genuine content creators, those producing valuable products, will be at a disadvantage and lack motivation to continue. This leads to a decline in content quality across social media platforms.
Additionally, distorted content that distorts moral values can impact the perceptions of young people, especially those who lack adequate knowledge and life experience. In reality, there is no simple solution to this issue. Content moderation on social media platforms is a complex problem, as the line between “shocking” and “inappropriate” can be very thin. More importantly, we need to raise awareness among viewers themselves.