Mastodon is designed to blend elements of both broadcast and forum social media, which creates confusion for users seeking a platform-focused experience.

Mastodon (like Twitter) uneasily straddle both. You follow individuals - unlike, say, Reddit, where you often don't know or care who posted - to read what they post. But it also invites you to have a general discussion that may not even concern the original poster. And that is, I think, part of why people looking for a platform aren't comfortable here. They want a focus on their posts and control over the reactions that the platform isn't designed to give them. #mastodon #socialmedia

There's two kinds of social media: the broadcast/platform kind (blogs, Youtube); and the forum kind (forums, Reddit). Broadcast has one person speak to many, and comments - if they exist - are all about reacting to the post or video. With forums, someone might post something, but that's only the jump-off point for a discussion among the readers. In extreme cases (the Ars forums) you may have years-old posts that's long since veered way off the original topic. #mastodon #socialmedia 1/2