"The modern digital landscape is dominated by warring platforms and constantly changing monetization schemes, leaving the average consumer with a daily scroll permeated by ads, slop, and the same six viral videos that have been circulating for years. During the early days of 2026, users on X popularized a word that encompasses why social media can feel just so annoying these days. It's called vagueposting - and you'll be seeing a lot more of it this year."
"Vagueposting is when people purposefully post or comment without any context, requiring people who want to know more to dig deeper or even outright ask what - or who - the post is about. According to Know Your Meme, the term vagueposting started with vaguebooking, a description for a purposefully inscrutable Facebook update that encourages friends to check in. The actual phrase vagueposting has been around since 2011, but internet users' usage of it has recently skyrocketed."
"While a subtweet and a vaguepost might look similar, the difference lies in the creator's intent. Subtweeting is all about posting something shady and hoping you put just enough information to clue people in that you're upset while maintaining plausible deniability. Most commonly people subtweet about people they know but also assume could stumble onto the post. It's also used in fandom spaces, where people not only offer oblique language, but purposefully use asterisks to replace key vowel"
Social media feeds have become saturated with ads, recycled viral clips, and platform-driven monetization that degrade user experience. Vagueposting involves publishing intentionally contextless or ambiguous posts that force curious readers to dig for details or ask clarifying questions. The phrase evolved from vaguebooking and has been used since 2011, with usage rising recently. Vagueposting leverages ambiguity to generate clicks, engagement, or controversy by letting audiences project meanings. Subtweeting appears similar but differs in intent: subtweets hint at specific people while preserving plausible deniability and are common in personal and fandom contexts.
Read at Rolling Stone
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