If you鈥檝e been on X (FKA Twitter) long enough, then you鈥檝e probably witnessed or been a victim of cyberbullying, aka being dragged or 鈥榗alled out鈥. Some of you reading this might be on the extreme end of this and are probably perpetrators. If you are, then you probably need to stick around for this more than you think.
Last week, we resumed our HER conversations on X spaces with a discussion on Free Speech and Cyberbullying. The session was moderated by , a content creator with 91大神 magazine. This conversation included insights from a legal perspective through , a specialised intellectual property lawyer. , therapist and founder of .
Here are our key takeaways from the conversation.
1. People Are Behind Keyboards And Screens
Before deciding to be judge and jury over someone鈥檚 tweet or media post, it鈥檚 important to remember that your comments are targeted at a human being. Beverly emphasises that we all have the right to express ourselves. At the same time, we also have the right not to be trolled and abused. Even though we might not have the intention to hurt the recipient, it鈥檚 important for us to understand that our words have an impact. On and off screens.
It鈥檚 easy to believe that there are no consequences for our actions online. Especially because it might be difficult to track people down. Also, the process of ensuring legal accountability for cyberbullying and promoting misinformation might seem cumbersome. But it is achievable. Who knows, you might be one tweet or comment away from being sued or putting yourself at the risk of paying damages. Before indulging in unruly behaviour online, remember that there are enforceable laws that protect people.
2. Know The Difference Between Calling Out Or Criticism And Humiliation
Being users of social media, we have all subjected ourselves to public scrutiny. More so, celebrities and public figures whose lives some of us feel entitled to. Because of this, criticism is nearly inevitable and is sometimes welcome. It would be unreasonable and unrealistic to have people keep their opinions to themselves. Especially when platforms are being developed every day for our consumption. It鈥檚 important to remember our humanity when delivering criticism. Again, there are human beings behind screens. We鈥檙e not always engaging with bots or ChatGPT.
If you鈥檙e not sure about when you鈥檙e crossing the line, vet your responses and try to identify whether you鈥檝e taken a step further from correction. When we move too far, we鈥檙e usually moving towards humiliating the recipient, which then turns into cyberbullying. Funmto advises identifying your aim and seeing how best to achieve it.
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3. It鈥檚 Better to Report Than to Amplify
This lesson is layered. The first being that while you might want to be the first person informing your friends and mutuals on gist, ensuring the accuracy of your information should trump virality. It鈥檚 great to be the one leading the discourse on an important subject matter or public figure. But before you think of becoming a banger boy or girl, think of the consequences of promoting false information.. Defamation and libel are real crimes punishable by law.
The second layer to this is in carrying out our social roles as internet users. There鈥檚 no need for us to join the bandwagon in quoting and retweeting news that appears to be false or harmful. Life isn鈥檛 hard. When you see someone being the subject of ridicule or humiliation, report the tweet. If false information is being spread, and the account promoting it is notorious for doing that, report the account.
4. Use The Block Button Often
Some of us are more educated than others, while some of us have more social capital than others. Whatever your position of privilege is, use it for good and not for evil. We鈥檝e already acknowledged that certain accounts are notorious for bullying and spreading misinformation. Our advice is to minimise engagement and interaction with these accounts by blocking them ahead of time. We don鈥檛 have to be victims of a thing before restricting or acting against it.
If necessary, make it your social responsibility to help your friends and family block the viral bullies and banger boys. People need protection from the ills of the internet. Children, especially, should be our top priority for this. It鈥檚 easy for them to see these things and engage without understanding how it can impact a person鈥檚 life or what the consequences might be for them.
We鈥檙e all learning to be better to each other, in person and online.
Just so you鈥檙e not found wanting, click to hear directly from our speakers and stay informed. It鈥檚 important to us that you鈥檙e part of the few people keeping the internet safe and friendly!
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