Over the past TV-show premieres, all social media were flooded with three types of people: “I watched and will tell everyone what happened”, “hey guys don’t say what happened!” and “I do not scroll my feed because everyone says what happened”.
And so, while going through all those posts, I remembered that the Internet and technology actually give us a huge range of options to adapt our virtual world to our liking.
While locking ourselves in our intellectual comfort bubble stuck with our own opinions and no room for a dialogue is definitely a bit of a stretch – not using technology to make our life better is wasted potential.
What’s a spoiler?
Before I explain how to easily make Facebook spoilers disappear, let’s establish one thing. A spoiler isn’t just ANY fact about a TV-show or a movie, a spoiler is a crucial piece of information about the plot that reveals an unknown aspect that you were dying to learn on your own. So, the fact that the last episode of Game of Thrones was hot is not a spoiler. Nor is the fact Han Solo dies. However, telling someone who hasn’t watched it yet who Luke’s father is, would be a spoiler. Everyone knows it, though, so if you haven’t watched it yet, please forgive me ¯ \ _ (ツ) _ / ¯
Although, spoilers can be quite subjective. I am aware of the fact that even if someone doesn’t reveal relevant plot information, they may spoil your fun by revealing other elements that could be crucial for you.
Also, there are a lot of people who consider almost everything in a movie “irrelevant to the plot” with the way we feel about it and interpret it as being relevant. Which essentially means it is impossible to completely avoid every spoiler. That’s why we are going to use technology to adjust our surroundings.
So, how do I avoid spoilers?
The solution I am talking about is as simple as effective. And it works. And I really like it when things work.
Just install this Google Chrome plugin which makes all posts containing specific words disappear.
From now on, you can browse your feed and catch up on the series whenever you feel like it without being afraid to accidentally read something that will spoil all the fun. Isn’t it beautiful?
And for all those who need to discuss TV-shows in public, I have a tip: just be nice – only discuss the plot using understatements and allusions understandable only to people who have already watched it. Or just let people know the post or comment contains spoilers to warn them. There is enough space for all of us on social media, let’s be kind to each other!
