The new phenomenon was observed by avid internet users, aka every one of us, who seem to be interested in content they don't necessarily like. The idea challenges the common comprehension of our online presence and suggests that we are here not to necessarily consume things we want, but on the contrary, watch, read, or scroll through something we utterly hate.
Welcome to the culture of hate-watchers, people who find entertainment in content they hate. Described by Merriam Webster dictionary, “hate-watch” is a verb used to watch and take pleasure in laughing at or criticizing (a disliked television show, movie, etc.) The first known use of the term was in 2008, but it really picked up in the past couple of years.
Part of the appeal of hate-watching clearly has to do with a fine line between guilty-pleasure media and watching something so bad it’s good. The infamous show Bachelor is one such example, but there is so much more. What if we all feel kind of a twisted pleasure in feeling smarter than the sometimes lost, blunt, and overdramatic real-life characters in such reality shows?
Not only do they make us value ourselves more by sensing that were are better than them, we also think that if something’s directed, shot, written, or said very poorly, we surely could have made it better than this.
But such a sense, or rather illusion, of temporary superiority can be truly soul-soothing. Think of the competitive society we live in, where everyone has to be their best selves to succeed, if they ever do. Hate-watching is our straight-way ticket to a sense of self-accomplishment without actually doing anything.
