Unfollowing Hunting Social Media Will Make Hunting Better: Matt Rinella Essay

[browning2480]

I think you are missing a key point to the issue: that when you kill animals to post pics of them in order to monetize the hunt by ads or sponsors, etc,. you have changed the primary reason to hunt and kill animals. The animal has been commodified and in order to keep the money coming in, you must kill more in order to post more to earn more - lather, rinse, repeat.

Wouldn’t that be the same for an Outfitter?

 

[ODB]

Wouldn’t that be the same for an Outfitter?

One could also say that about every equipment manufacturer.

But I think the line is drawn where an outfitter has a bit of exclusivity over an area and high costs act as a barrier to entry.

The “go public, my young man” movement creates a different dynamic.

But essentially, yes. It’s the tragedy of the commons applied to game animals, be they sea cucumbers (how much more harvest will happen because it’s ‘cool’ now?), to elk, etc.

 

[OXN939]

I think you are missing a key point to the issue: that when you kill animals to post pics of them in order to monetize the hunt by ads or sponsors, etc,. you have changed the primary reason to hunt and kill animals. The animal has been commodified and in order to keep the money coming in, you must kill more in order to post more to earn more - lather, rinse, repeat.

Agreed with this basic point, but I do think there's a big difference between the overt social media networks- FB, Instagram, Tik Tok, etc- and forums like this. On those, the "helpful content to self absorbed narcissism" ratio is extraordinarily low. They are designed to manipulate the most basic pleasure receptors of the brainstem, and the "content" is reflective of that- there are a ton of chicks on there who couldn't run a range safely by themselves much less kill anything, and still have hundreds of thousands of followers and sponsorships just because they're willing to post revealing pictures of themselves online. Only difference between that and Onlyfans is that the exchange on the latter is more direct.

The word "forum" alludes to the fact that they are a place to discuss ideas with others to improve yourself. I've learned a ton about western big game hunting from people who will never get credit, attribution or anything other than the enjoyment of conversing about and bettering the pursuit we all love. I try to help as many guys out as I can completely anonymously when they ask questions, and there are a ton of people on here with way more experience and knowledge about a lot of stuff that do the same.

 

[ddd-shooter]

I think you are missing a key point to the issue: that when you kill animals to post pics of them in order to monetize the hunt by ads or sponsors, etc,. you have changed the primary reason to hunt and kill animals. The animal has been commodified and in order to keep the money coming in, you must kill more in order to post more to earn more - lather, rinse, repeat.

Wouldn’t that be the same for an Outfitter?

Isn't that why they have licenses, permits, and are held accountable for their impacts on removing public resources? Don't we regulate their comings, goings, and ensure they operate above board and are subject to extra scrutiny?

Here's an idea. If you are part of the "gig hunting economy," you must report it and be licensed to do so.
But I do so hate the govt and its methods....

 

[robby denning]

I think you are missing a key point to the issue: that when you kill animals to post pics of them in order to monetize the hunt by ads or sponsors, etc,. you have changed the primary reason to hunt and kill animals. The animal has been commodified and in order to keep the money coming in, you must kill more in order to post more to earn more - lather, rinse, repeat.

Sure, I realize Matt article was pointing that out, but with his challenge of “keep hunting but don’t post in 2022,” seem to me like a general boycott of hunting pictures on social media, and rockslide IS social media.

That’s all.


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[Mule3006Elk]

I don't post pics/brag. Maybe a dog pic w/o dead upland game but thats about it. She deserves a little bragging every now and then.

Share information on Rokslide: yes on gear etc. I'm no expert but chime in here and there.

I scroll the discussion topics. Some folks share some really good gear and hunt strategy information. From that perspective I'm a sponge. HaHa.

I don't have IG.

FB very light activity. I find it annoying more than anything. I follow more groups than individuals.

I've learned a lot on this forum. Can't deny that!

I don't mind someone being proud of their hard work but I think most of us draw the line at self-indulgence. Seeing big game animals, that most of us have a tremendous amount of respect for, being used for ones monetary gain doesn't sit well with a lot of folks.

Would those profiting still make videos and post pics w/o monetary incentive or the dopamine rush of 1000s of likes. IMO most wouldn't.

I would describe myself as a soul hunter if that makes sense. I don't do it for any other reason.

So yeah, it rubs me the wrong way, if one hunts for other reasons than the purity of pursuing big game animals. Whether that me money, racks only, ego, likes, etc.

To me it's no different than someone who gives to the food bank or some other good deed then feels the need to tell everyone. They do it for the pats on the back!!

 

[ODB]

Sure, I realize Matt article was pointing that out, but with his challenge of “keep hunting but don’t post in 2022,” seem to me like a general boycott of hunting pictures on social media, and rockslide IS social media.

That’s all.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Yup.

I think the intent is a good one: to be introspective about why we do what we do. If we are doing things for reasons that might not be so great, it creates the opportunity to change.

I think this same idea can be applied to damn near everything we do.

“Know thyself” as the great philosophers said.

 

[chaser_2332]

From the headline of the article i was ready to hope on board and agree a ton with Matt, however after listening to the blood origin podcast i didn’t feel his message came across great at all. There are definitely some decent points you can pull from what he said but his whole distain and generalization of any hunt on social median i can’t get behind.

 

[regealex]

yup

 

[Will_m]

I feel pretty confident the damage done through IG, YouTube and Facebook and those type of platforms is exponentially greater than that of all the forums collectively. I wish IG and YouTube would ban hunting, guns and archery related stuff.

Boy, I bet the fishing would sure suck after that lol!

 

[betterluckythangood]

I read the article, and realized, I had no idea who this guy was. Then when he said "his brother", I still had no idea who he or his brother was. He said Meateater, I had heard of that, but have never seen the show.
I have to agree with everything he wrote about social media and hunting. I do say though that I don't consider sites like Rokslide or discussion forums part of social media. Here you get the good news, the bad news, the advice shared by friends and fellow hunters and you can usually take what you are told as the truth. Social media (in my eyes) is a very large contributor for several issues with the current attitude in the world today. People have lots the ability to act civil AND that there are consequences for what you say, hence the keyboard kings.
I may be getting old, but life before social media sure was a lot better. People actually talked and paid attention to what was going on around them. Plus if someone was in trouble people used to stop and help instead of pulling their phone out to video and post it.
Off my soapbox now.

 

[hunt1up]

I’ve somehow read almost all of this thread and I’m about halfway through the Blood Origins podcast as well. I can’t say I disagree with anything Matt has said.

I think at the heart of the problem is social media’s negative impact on society as a whole. Matt sees no reason to share kill pics with strangers, I agree. I also don’t see much benefit in sharing personal experiences with the general public. Facebook/Twitter/Instagram has succeeded because it is tapped into basic human psychology. Hunting is just one small portion of society, but it’s all impacted by it.

That being said, I’ve posted a few successful pics of my kids with their deer here on Rokslide, and the occasional kill pic on this forum and a few others. I guess I’ve always viewed forums as a more of a community where we share opinions, experiences, and expertise. I’ve got to know one of my now good friends through hunting forums and I’ve met and talked to a lot of good people as a result of my time on forums. Maybe that makes me a hypocrite? Wouldn’t be the first time and this topic has me rethinking things.

I think we’re just experiencing in our hunting community what all parts of society do. You’ve got sociopaths, narcissists, money whores, and also well intentioned people all mixed together. The turds always seem to float to the top.

 

[Gutshotem]

I'm just going to say that comparing Rokslide to IG or FB is like comparing a hit of fentanyl to the caffeine in a cup of coffee or a bluegill to a blue marlin or Leonardo DaVinci to Hunter Biden.

 

[bowieknife50]

I don't know how to do the fancy strike through typing most people do but I fixed it for everyone. See below:

"Unfollowing ALL social media will make THE WORLD better."

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[Deadfall]

You ever been to Utah? They could give out 10 tags and it would feel like there were a million hunters. They can’t go hunting without bringing the entire town with them.

That's how menanites are hear in montana. Except the entire tribe buys tags and a handful of guts go kill everything. Literally.

 

[Deadfall]

Wouldn’t that be the same for an Outfitter?

That depends on the outfitter. If what Randy says about his business is accurate (no reason not to believe him) then he is operating in same financial realm of most public land outfitters. Would scare you to know how little they actually net.
Back when I was working full seasons for a outfitter. I made it a point to enter the season atleast 215 lbs. That's June. By the end I would be 185-190 lbs. That's eating as much as I could shovel in as often as I could. 9-11 thousand calories a day. Most outfits don't go that hard. Some do.
I have no experience working for a private land outfitter. The private guys operate in a entirely different realm. No government oversight.

Outfitters provide a service, helping those that otherwise would not be able to hunt in places.

Unfortunately, money and greed has polluted that industry. Exactly as it does and has with every other industry.

Once again, consumers are the problem. Not the machine.

 

[Megalodon]

Kifaru Cast just added their “rebuttal” to Rinella, episode 388. Pretty embarrassing 1:44 for those guys if you ask me. Would be interested to see @Aron Snyder respond here like Randy has. I’m sure he has better things to do than browse Rokslide, but he’s either seen this thread and actively decided to shit on a big portion of the Kifaru customer base, or hasn’t seen this thread and is waaay out of touch with a big portion of the Kifaru customer base.

 

[Bastian30_06]

I'm just going to say that comparing Rokslide to IG or FB is like comparing a hit of fentanyl to the caffeine in a cup of coffee or a bluegill to a blue marlin or Leonardo DaVinci to Hunter Biden.

Are we Hunter or Leo?

 

[HaydenLane]

Kifaru Cast just added their “rebuttal” to Rinella, episode 388. Pretty embarrassing 1:44 for those guys if you ask me. Would be interested to see @Aron Snyder respond here like Randy has. I’m sure he has better things to do than browse Rokslide, but he’s either seen this thread and actively decided to shit on a big portion of the Kifaru customer base, or hasn’t seen this thread and is waaay out of touch with a big portion of the Kifaru customer base.

Based on their presence on social media and podcasts, what did you expect?

I didn’t agree with a lot of what Matt said. There was truth in some, but there was also a lot of stupid elitism. The idea that if you post on social media at all it changes the reason you hunt is painting with an absurdly large brush. I also think Matt misses the mark as far as hunter numbers. They aren’t growing, and that is a problem.

That being said, the bigger problem with people like Dan, Aron, and most others in the industry, and a point they both wrote off in their rebuttals, is that people killing 5+ big game animals a year is bad for other hunters. It’s directly taking opportunity from someone else. Great that they give it away or whatever, but that’s a handful of other hunters who could’ve been in the field, who may feel more engaged, who may be more passionate about hunting if they weren’t stuck on the sidelines. Lack of opportunity is a real problem, and I think a big part of it is some people are taking every tag they can get their hands on.

 

[gdiemer]

To give Randy N. credit, he seems (at least what he preaches) to hate YouTube and most social media outlets. He has brought his video content to a paid website for those who want to get away from social media. I feel a key piece of something being "social media" is that it's free to the users and easily found by anyone. I do not subscribe to his channel but honestly have been thinking about it just for entertainment during down time at home. My personal opinion is that less evil than most other influencers out there. What can I say, I like watching hunting videos. If I'm a hypocrite, oh well.......

I'm with you on this one for sure, social media is a double edged sword and I think Randy N. is one of the more positive figures in the hunting space. Practices what he preaches, doesn't succumb to what others are saying, and is through and through dedicated to what he believes. The fact he has responded and interacted with so many on this particular thread has earned him even more respect in my eyes. Glad to see Randy N. trying to move to a private platform, where big social media can't censor and steal info