Five Second Epidemic

Graphic by Anika Dua

Our days on social media consist of scrolling, scrolling, and - you guessed it - some more scrolling. Anyone who’s on any media platform knows that the main function of  surfing the internet is sliding your thumb down the screen. It’s muscle memory, at this point. But do we actually watch the content, or do we judge it based on the first five seconds that we see/hear?

The five second epidemic can be ~defined~ like this: if you’re watching a video or listening to a song, and you’re not immediately hooked within those first five seconds, muscle memory kicks in. It’s alright, we impatiently scroll, too. But why? Why have our attention spans been limited to five seconds? We could point a finger at social media and how fast paced it can be, or we could blame the bizarre and overwhelming need to shove vast amounts of content into our brains. 

We personally wanna start with examining the effects of the arguably prehistoric app Vine (may she rest in peace) which was similar to TikTok (or Instagram reels, if you’re that person), except it was only 6 second videos being posted. It was Vine that got our generation scrolling and scrolling for a video perfectly curated to our tastes. Now, TikTok takes hours out of our days.

But it’s not just videos we’re feigning for - it’s music, too. If you’re listening to your own playlist on Spotify, you’re probably skipping songs that you added left and right because those first five seconds just aren’t fitting the vibe. Listen, if you’re not in the mood, you’re not in the mood. No shame. 

These years of scrolling and being able to focus for only seconds at a time really shorten our attention spans. Because of this, we’re used to quick intakes of media, moving onto the next thing when we’re bored. How often do you check your phone during a movie? An episode of a TV show? Your fucking email? Why? Just to get on another app and scroll for a little bit because things in life are not moving fast enough. We distract ourselves from the things that bore us just for a few moments of excitement. 

It’s a part of our lives now, this digital pacifier. We have a constant need to be entertained, and when we’re not, we find something else that gets us giggling. Lord knows that after COVID, we need a good chuckle. 

It’s kind of sad, but at least we know the root of it, and we know it’s hard to stop. To be born into a technological age makes it sort of expected for this to happen, especially when apps like TikTok encourage scrolling to boost interaction.

Don’t feel bad, we are all victims of the five second epidemic. Maybe one day we can move it up to ten, judge the video or song for a little while longer before making a decision. Or maybe one day, we’ll be able to focus on more time intensive hobbies again, like crocheting. Maybe, like, twiddle your thumbs elsewhere in order to stop the scrolling addiction. Because five seconds is crazy.