Perhaps the issue is that whatever you're good at, you'll be shown along side the best of the best. Your friend's joke is funny when you hear it at a party. But is it as funny on Twitter, where it's shown alongside jokes from professional comedians?
Not to mention that the audience is very different between friends at a party and on Twitter. Twitter, and social media, is far more reaching and lots of context and intent may be lost as we cross many different cultural lines and play the game of telephone. Your friends are far more likely to be good faith actors, but even there we can see how a singular bad actor can quickly ruin a situation. I'd argue that there's parallels to not just jokes but any types of communication (science, tech, political, etc) and attraction. (Though people are also able to successfully carve out bubbles and find a very specific audience but at the same time very large. Both can be true. Sometimes the hate can amplify these bubbles. Not so simple)
Absolutely has been. Loads of YouTube channels where the creator has a thick accent, looks unremarkable but builds an audience through persistence and/or passion.
There are comedic social media creators that look plain but build a style and crowd as a result.
No. The average social media consumer isn’t that deep.
Surely, though, the average HN user is the pinnacle of thoughtfulness.