Every video sharing website nowadays features some form of “shorts”, brief clips ranging from about 10 to 30 seconds. After the launch and subsequent popularity of Tik Tok, other websites began to copy the short video format in hopes of higher viewership and ratings. 

With websites such as YouTube and SnapChat using short-form content as a selling point, it has become commonplace for users to scroll through shorts for hours on end. 

This emphasis on short-form content results in shorter attention spans; people cannot be bothered to listen to lengthy, informative videos when they can instead watch a 30-second clip for a cheap laugh. Watching a plethora of these shorts in succession can add up to the time it takes to watch a documentary or other piece of meaningful media. It becomes second nature to aimlessly scroll through mind-numbing content for hours on end rather than spending time efficiently.

This is not to mention that even when shorts are informative, they are not long enough to properly analyze the material being presented. Fitting a lengthy explanation of a scandal or controversy into a short clip means that a lot of context is omitted for the sake of time. The amount of actual learning that takes place is minimal at best.

Worse yet, due to the popularity of shorts across all of these social media platforms, the push for more similar content will only increase. 

The time-old phrase “quality over quantity” comes to mind during this age in which short-form content has taken over. The number of videos produced for the sake of views is staggering, and shorts are easy to release in mass. Content creators will even use AI voice overs or facecams in their videos to save money on putting in actual effort to make their content unique.

With so many shortcuts readily available, longer, in-depth content needs to resurface. There is no feasible way to revive short-form content from the lazy, content farm ridden mess that has become the basis for acceptable content other than shifting to a more pleasurable format.