The Social Media Turnoff

I started this post a couple of months ago. Oops! What is my excuse? Work was busy, and that's enough to kill one's inspiration. I also secretly hoped the subject of online hate would become irrelevant. Why wouldn't it? Miracles do happen! You want an example of a miracle... Bennifer is back!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (readers frantically googling Bennifer) I had to throw it in there ha ha. Well, I couldn't believe it when it came up in my news feed. Anyway back to earth, twenty years should be enough time to learn to be more sociable on social media... But when England lost Euro 2020 after leading for over an hour, I knew it would blow up again... with hate... not with support, compassion or appreciation... The social media giants failed to stop the hate wildfire from spreading once again. 

It's sad to think how much damage one hateful comment can do. All the love overshadowed by hate and erased in seconds. Lives destroyed. Am I being too dramatic? Definitely not. We don't need to look far to find victims of online abuse. The invention of social media created a whole new host of problems for us. We never used to know there were so many trolls in the world, and neither did we care about their opinions. 

Twenty years later, we're still led to believe there is no efficient way to stop the ever-flowing stream of hate. Social media moderators are doing their best, but even they are not equipped to cope with the overwhelming influx of graphic content. How can they protect us if they themselves are not protected? The moderator in the interview below speaks about the horrific posts and the toll on her mental health, fuelled by insufficient support. 

Facebook moderator: ‘Every day was a nightmare’ - BBC News

My social media turnoff happened years ago. The more I was meaninglessly scrolling through posts and adverts, the more it became white noise. The more conversations started with, "Are you on ****book?" (I mean, don't swear at me already) the less I was interested. I deleted it and suddenly my days no longer revolved around phone notifications. Must admit, I'm partial to people sharing their creative talents online, such as dance routines I can't master, practical skills I'm desperate for, e.g. how to fix a zip, or general silliness. However, the rest of it can disappear in a black hole. Especially the filtered reality, and the so called "influencers" with no apparent purpose. If you're tempted to become one, read the article below to find out how it will slowly suck you in, consume you and spit you out, eventually. 

‘I was addicted to the high’: I became an influencer as a joke – then it nearly broke me | Health & wellbeing | The Guardian