A Viral Post?

Yesterday, my post with a running title "Was Ahtisa Manalo Cyberbullied?" seemed like it had gone viral. When the clock struck 12, there were already 1,361,070 views, 2251 likes, 436 comments, and 103 shares.

This is the first time this has happened to me as a writer and a blogger. I was pinching myself to see if it was true or not, but the hallmark signs were there that the post had unusually high notification metrics, and the exponential growth in reach and engagement was achieved in a short period, and it quickly reached an audience far wider than my existing followers. 

When I write, all I need is to be truthful, have good communication skills, creativity, and focus on helping my audience understand my points of view and deliver a unique, engaging, and consistent content regularly.

I try to recognize my own biases too ... doing that is essential for accurate interpretation, better decision making, and stronger critical thinking.  In the case of Ahtisa and her falling out with Cosmo, bias shapes what gets included in what I wrote, what needs to be emphasized, or omitted, and how evidence is framed; being aware of it prevents misunderstanding and misuse of information.

I don't have any pretensions that I am good and am always right, and it never crosses my mind that I will be writing because I want my post to become viral. Always.

Who doesn't want engagements, views, and shares ... anyways. The audience and the followers' support are the lifeline of any writer worth their salt.

Ahtisa being bullied is not clickbait. 

It has gone viral because it triggers strong emotions (awe, joy, anger, surprise), and besides, Ahtisa has a strong and solid fanbase, which is why they came to her rescue when her hands and tongue were tied.

It also has high relatability; pageants are always known to help candidates empower themselves, but it was not so in this case. After her interview with V.G., it becomes evident that pageants can also make or break dreams and aspirations.

The post has gone viral, maybe because the memes created by Miss Cosmo's supporters (Ahtisa being Medusa) were visually appealing. That had helped amplify platform algorithms that favored high engagement.  

It was timely also, and a perfect time for user-sharing ... and the audience who shared the post feel good or smart when they did it. They feel they have done something good.

It was funny that the fans instead of getting mad, marvelled at Ahtisa's appearance with snakes and all. "Kung si Ahtisa daw ang ahas ... napakagandang ahas niya ay hindi daw sila dapat matakot. Maganda siyang Medusa or Valentina."

You see ... it is a salad of psychological triggers, strategic timing, and algorithmic fuel ( and has not have nothing to do with the writer), that made the content spread like wildfire.

That makes me wonder, kailan kaya ang repeat and encore ng ganito katinding engagement?

Maybe in another lifetime? On the other hand, I am happy I wrote that piece.