Swiping, benching, ghosting… Dating apps can be so cold. In his vintage football shirt and mullet he looked a bit like an art school student, but he was funny enough to make up for it. We spoke about the benefits of dating posh people and he said they always know good restaurants and then offered to take me to the pizza one his ex showed him. We messaged for a couple of days after that, until eventually he stopped replying. A few years ago a situation like this would have materialised into a date.
As would that guy I kissed all night through club smoke a week later. The teacher I met through Hinge would have actually taken me to see the new Bond film we talked about.
It has been 10 years since Tinder revolutionised the landscape of dating by allowing its users to swipe right to like someone, and left to say no. In February it celebrated an impressive 75m monthly active users, but apps are coming under increased criticism as more of us begin to question the benefits of our constant swiping. We bench put partners on hold until we find someone better , breadcrumb provide enough attention to keep someone interested without ever actually committing and ghost disappear without explanation.
Faced with this endless conveyor belt of faces people become increasingly disposable to us. Amy and Maddie deleted their dating apps in July, because they were starting to make them feel depressed.
I did the same, then recently ended up downloading mine again for another try and was surprised at how noticeably empty it all felt. When I first subscribed three years ago I was met with a stream of cute guys with sandy summer skin, small hoop earrings and fleeces sitting on broken camping chairs at festivals.
