It can be fun to define new words we’ve all heard here and there, so here’s mine:
Slop (noun)
Media produced to exploit the content recommendations algorithms of social media websites. Usually pejorative.
Slop content is not intrinsically different to any creative work designed to work according to genre conventions and history is replete with examples of this “low culture”. But slop here refers to the internet context in which it occurs and is designed for it. Consider for instance the Youtuber who makes a “news with views” commentary video that always happens to be around 10 to 30 minutes in length. That’s because Youtube promotes longer videos, so a good Youtuber will never say in 200 words what you can’t say in 2000 words. Content which is slop is not necessarily bad. Indeed, the entire corpus of ambient music on Youtube is arguably slop content, but that doesn’t prevent Youtube ambient music videos from amassing millions of views and selling thousands of copies. Often the musicians who produce these hour long sonic meanderings designed to elicit the world of Blade Runner 2049 (and other fictional locations) have employed great skill in music production.
Let’s move onto the next word – Brain Rot.
1. Brain Rot (noun)
Media produced to exploit the content recommendation algorithms of social media websites by being as entrancingly strange as possible. A subset of slop content, brain rot works by producing entrainment in the viewer so that they do not look away.
2. Brain Rot (noun)
A psychological condition produced in a chronic consumer of brain rot slop content marked by apathy, an inability to concentrate on anything that isn’t internet media, or the demonstrating of odd behaviours referencing obscure internet content.
There are two definitions here. The former definition is epitomised by the “Skibidi Toilet” series – a never ending cartoon series defined by… well it’s so hard to define that you simply have to watch it to attempt understanding. An even when you do watch Skibidi Toilet you still wont understand, you may even find yourself drawn in as you continuously attempt to understand with the trance only broken when the video ends. Conceptually speaking Skibidi Toilet features animated toilets with talking heads (a.k.a. Skibidi Toilets) trying to take over the world, and CameraHeads, or humanoids with CCTV camera heads fighting them off in an all-out war. But this is merely concept, minus the percept it makes no sense at all. Skibidi Toilet is an archetypal example of both slop and brain rot.
The latter definition is mostly acutely demonstrated by the odd behaviours of neglected children who have been raised by the iPad or smartphone. The person, usually a child, suffering from brain rot may believe or say strange things that would only make sense in the context of the internet, for instance they may shout “smiley red tomato face” to express shock when “Oh my God!” would have sufficed. Brain rot could be a genuine psychological malady.