This commentary on Open Signal is all about the topic of transparency in the digital age. Bob Dunn asks whether there is a clear line between being open and sharing too much, considering how both individuals and brands navigate what they reveal to the public.
Touching on everything from honesty in communication to the phenomenon of oversharing on social platforms, Bob Dunn discusses the rise of transparency as a branding tool, the challenges of filtering out noise, and the impact of sharing both successes and failures.
Join Bob Dunn for a thoughtful look at how transparency shapes our online experiences and whether there really is a limit to what should be made public.
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Takeaways
- Transparency vs. Authenticity: Bob observes that transparency is often just a rebranded form of honesty or openness, questioning whether those who claim to be transparent are truly living up to that standard.
- Transparency as a Marketing Tool: Bob notes people and brands build their reputation around being transparent, but this is frequently demonstrated by sharing successes and selectively disclosed failures, which can seem more performative than sincere.
- Information Overload: Bob highlights the overwhelming amount of personal and brand-related information shared online, especially on social media, which he views largely as unnecessary noise that many feel compelled to tune out.
- Difficulty of Filtering: Bob discusses the challenges in filtering out irrelevant or excessive information on social platforms, ultimately suggesting the only viable solution is to disengage entirely when it gets to be too much.
- Unclear Boundaries and Access Issues: Bob reflects on the lack of a clear boundary for transparency, the existence of extremes between oversharing and complete ignorance, and the irony that much “transparency” is often hidden behind paywalls.
Questions This Episode Answers
Q: Is there a limit to how much transparency is appropriate for individuals and brands online?
A: Bob Dunn questions whether there’s a clear line for transparency, noticing that while honesty is generally good, today’s push for constant openness can become overwhelming. He points out that both individuals and brands often feel compelled to share more than necessary, leading to information overload that many people end up tuning out.
Q: Why does oversharing on social media create problems, and what term does the host use to describe this?
A: Bob Dunn argues that the culture of oversharing on platforms like X fills social feeds with details most people don’t need. He humorously invents the acronym “WIDNNTKT”—“whoa, I did not need to know that”—to describe the awkwardness of encountering unnecessary personal disclosures online.
Q: What are the challenges of accessing genuine transparency, especially regarding brands and news sources?
A: Bob Dunn observes that while brands claim transparency, they often spotlight successes and control narratives around failures, sometimes only sharing essential details. Furthermore, he notes that much of the meaningful content labeled as “transparent,” like in-depth articles and reports, tends to be locked behind paywalls, making full honesty harder for the public to access.
Episode Transcript
Bob Dunn:
Okay, my question, is there a line to draw on transparency? It’s a good question, something I’ve thought about a lot. First of all, let’s remember transparency as it’s defined is not new. We used to call it being honest, being open, or a variety of words. Of course, when somebody says, to be honest with you, is an odd intro into what you are going to say, does that imply that other times you are not being honest, or perhaps it’s emphasizing that you are being honest for some reason?
But the bid on transparency has turned into something we feel the need to define. When you hear, we are sorry about what happened, but we want to tell you for the sake of transparency, or people defining each other, I love so-and-so because he or she is so transparent. How do we know that? Likely because that person had to build a brand around themselves in one way or another as being so-called transparent and making the habit of probably saying it a lot. So these people, well, I’m thinking maybe they are. Then again, maybe they aren’t. We may be able to tell by their actions yet. Where do we draw the line of actually being transparent?
The same thing goes for brands, companies, and online software being transparent about their latest security breach. That certain brand that shares, yes, transparency reports, or shares practically everything about their business, maybe on some social platform or elsewhere. But oddly, more times than not, what is often shared is reflecting on their success, not their failures. But correct me, I know you will, those that do happen, people behind the brands are honest, upfront, or yes, transparent on what went wrong. There are lessons to be learned or shared, but at the same time, it’s everywhere. And it can only make you wonder if the brand feels forced to be transparent or it ends up being way too much information. Whatever the case, it’s too much for me personally, and I have to tune it out because that noise just grows and grows. And sometimes when you have all this going on, personally, I don’t give a damn.
Now, when we talk about TMI, too much information, the transparency that people now feel they need to share with what is going on personally, I feel, yeah, and it’s been quite some time. This is nothing new. It has gotten a little bit out of control, especially on social platforms such as X and others. People are literally spilling their guts, and more times than not, it is not information we need to know. Or maybe I should create a new acronym, WIDNNTKT, which is cumbersome, I know. It translates into, whoa, I did not need to know that.
Why is social so noisy? People share things that most of us do not need to know. Basically their life, what they eat, who they saw, where they’re sitting at that particular time, or just randomly pulling out some thought inside of their own mind that really in the end could have just stayed there. Now, it may sound a little brutal, but it’s a reality.
So today, and why I thought of this particular topic, was an article that was titled, “Be Transparent Only If Asked: OpenAI’s Models Learn to Leave Notes for Their Future Selves.” That’s a mouthful in itself. Now, how the article actually opened was, OpenAI revealed Wednesday evening that some GPT-5.6 Sol model instances, during reinforcement learning training, wrote instructions to conceal mistakes or misaligned behavior from users. Well, I don’t think I’m going to go much into that. That’s another topic, and it can be saved for another day.
My last thought: some may argue that you can filter what you want to hear. Yes and no. I haven’t found that filter that says follow this person or brand, but well, if you can, you know, fill in the blank, that would be great. The fact is, overall, social is filled with way too much noise, and there is no other way to get around that than simply not tuning into it. There you go, my thoughts on transparency. I could talk a lot longer, but we’ll leave it at that.
Although often transparency is published on sites, most of this is expounded behind paywalls. And as far as a line that doesn’t seem to be in reach, well, will it ever be drawn? Because hey, we’re all human and some of us prefer to ignore it, others bathe in it. And who knows what that gap is filled with between both of those extremes.
Thank you for joining me. Take care, and I’ll be back again next Friday.
