The Internet, Social Media and Social Disorder

 

The title of this blog is certainly paradoxical. If it wasn't for the Internet I would not be writing this today for people online to read. On the one hand, I just appreciate that the Internet has completely changed the way we humans go about our business and develop our careers and social life. On the other hand, it has provided, what would I call them, the cyber trolls, the Web fiends, in other words, those social dumbbells who love nothing more than to create havoc, expressing hate, racism and anger. This can be in so many spheres: sports competitions, love affairs (and beyond), education grievances, political and international politics, entertainment, all those so-called stars and celebrities - the list goes on, but . . .

The Internet as we know it goes back a long way. I still remember back in the day, years ago, when we wrote our letters on paper and posted them at the local post office/mailbox. When we wanted to talk to someone, we phoned them on a landline. We could send our messages via telegrams. Television and radio were our sources of entertainment. And yes, there were men’s magazines: Esquire, Penthouse, Playboy, etc. So how did we get from these 'old-fashioned' ways of life to the present?

Back in the 80s, the Internet was already established and personal computers were being sold worldwide. I bought my first PC in 1984, an Apple Macintosh. For me, as a writer, it was the greatest invention ever. And so we moved on and the World Wide Web (WWW) was moving fast, across the planet, there were e-mails and Usenet, from gophers o the WWW, search engines became the norm by the 90s, file sharing, hosting services and of course mobile phones were the norm - still are. It’s how all these developments were the causes of so many tragedies and social upheavals especially during the mid-noughties right through to this day. Much of this in recent years has been by the use of the following (in no particular order):

·         Facebook

·         YouTube

·         Instagram

·         TikTok

·         Whatsapp

·         Snapchat

·         Pinterest

·         Twitter

·         LinkedIn

 

It doesn’t matter whichever one of these you use, it will bring positive as well as negative responses. I could go on to Instagram and state how much I loved Boris Johnson as our Prime Minister. And I can tell you, within minutes, there’d be countless numbers of spiteful and hateful remarks. In other words, say one thing on any of the above social media and you’re sure to get the opposite/extremist response. But it’s when anger, hatred and greed get involved that things can lead to humiliation and even death. These days we call it cyberbullying which includes sending, posting, or sharing negative, harmful, false, or mean content about someone else. It can include sharing personal or private information about somebody - anybody causing embarrassment or humiliation. And much of this 20th-century mindset is a characteristic of the millennial/snowflake generation, those born between 1981 - 1994.

 

I'll end this blog by telling the awful story of SR (name withheld). This was a lovely 15-year-old girl who just loved helping others. She had dreams of joining the fire service and was passionate about drawing and spending time outside with her dogs. SR had overcome challenges before; her mum, a drug addict, abandoned her when she was little but in her final year of life, it was cyberbullying from her peers that would ultimately end in death. It was said that kids started making fun of her red hair and braces. And this went on for months. The bullying continued on social media and in school but it was the taunting on Facebook, Instagram, and other messaging platforms, where classmates would tell her to kill herself. Her parents contacted Instagram headquarters but they didn't do anything about it. Her mother eventually smashed her phone and broke it in half. Seemingly her phone and social media ruled her life and in June of this particular year the bullying had already taken its toll - SR hanged herself.

 

Is there any way out of this 20th-century Internet social media dilemma? I hate to say but I think not. Yes, the invention and subsequent expansion have many positive aspects but away in the background there is the dark, murky underworld which seems uncontrollable and I think can only get worse.