“Although new forms of drama find home through social media, teens’ behaviors have not significantly changed. Social media has not radically altered the dynamics of bullying, but it has made these dynamics more visible to more people. We must use this visibility, not to justify increased punishment, but to help youth who are actually crying out for attention. Blaming technology or assuming that conflict will disappear if technology usage is minimized is naive.”
In chapter five of It’s Complicated, Danah Boyd examines the hot-button issue of Cyber Bullying and questions if social media has amplified the meanness and cruelty of adolescents. The excerpt above culminates the chapter and echoes the sentiment I wish most people would adopt. Children have always been cruel, social media and the easy accessibility of cell phones do not create bullies; it has only granted them with new platforms to engage in the same old cruelty.
I am guilty of re-posting this video of #shovelgirl on my Instagram last year. At the time, I thought nothing of it because it was literally everywhere. But after seeing adults just like me laugh and make accusations about this 16 year old child, I feel a certain level of disgust with myself and this culture of making bullying and children on children violence more visible than it ever has been. When posting these videos, we’re almost like co -conspirators in these children’s torment. While it is funny it’s created the misuse of visibility that Boyd refers to. While children will be children, as adults we could be using this expanded visibility social media has afforded us with to aid children not make fun of them for likes on Instagram. The anchors speculated if the video had been staged and all came to the conclusion that the girls had planned on recording their fighting so that it could go “viral”. A goal that isn’t so unheard of when there’s websites like WorldStar , who have millions of viewers everyday posting and re-posting these fights.
Boyd suggest that while we can not prevent youth from being hurt, we can make an effort to empower youth and recognize their hurting. I agree whole-heartedly with that statement. I sympathize with children who are victims of cyberbulling, I couldn’t imagine my insecurities being disperse for the world to see with a click of a button and .So I’m going to stop reposting or tagging my friend in kid fight videos because I just don’t want to be a part of the larger problem anymore.
I totally agree. Here’s just another example of the double standards attached to being a teenager in this society. We as adults scold them for being so cruel to each other online, condemning “cyberbullying”, but then we turn right back around and perpetuate it by sharing and laughing at the outcomes of this phenomenon. There was this video, the Star Wars kid video, that awkward yearbook photo meme, and so many other instances of cyberbullying that have gone viral and people of all ages then go on to appropriate it as the next funny internet trend of the moment. We have to stop treating these examples of cyberbullying as so trivial.
I’m always a conflicting mixture of sad and curious whenever I come across these viral fight clips. I agree with you that the simple act of re-posting or liking these videos contribute in some aspect to the cyber-bullying of the victim. I feel that the pressure to fight is especially high in middle and high school. It discomforts me when I see people’s initial reaction to a fight is to bust out their phones and record while shouting, “WoooorldStaar” instead of trying to break the fight. It’s as if we’ve become desensitized to this schoolyard violence and don’t realize that our phones are urging the fight to go on.
I agree, as well. I think we need to change the direction of our discourse in regards to how we talk about cyberbullying. Bullying has always been around, but the internet has brought it to a whole other level that makes the act and the ability to share easier. I can understand why it would be considered “funny” to share things like these. I’m sure I’ve been victim to that, as well, thinking that there was no harm in my actions. But you’re right. I think the continuation of making things like these a “big deal” and encouraging in it some way by making it go viral is wrong. This is not how we should be talking about cyberbullying.
Though Boyd talks about children and cyberbullying, I really think cyberbullying needs to include everyone of all ages. There are so many accounts of adults cyberbullying as well – I feel like for as many 12 year old boy trolls that are out there, there is a proportionate amount of 40 year old trolls. Like you said, bullying isn’t some new thing that happened with the Internet. Bullies have merely changed the platform where they engage. Modeling behavior is a huge part of why kids do what they do…and that most certainly includes bullying/cyberbullying.
I know that I have probably been a part of this, but I agree that the sharing of videos such as these and things that happen to other could perpetuate this notion of cyber-bullying. Even though for us it is a random person and something that happened, for them it is their life especially if it goes viral it could traumatize them.
I’ve always wondered what made these videos so viral or so funny in the first place. With the #shovelgirl and Sharkeisha fight videos as the most prominent in my memory, I can’t really recall why I found them to funny to repost in the first place, after giving it some thought now. Interestingly enough, though, there is a large following for clips like this, including Worldstar. One of my friends from Madera, CA explained to me my first year that since there isn’t much to do in the Central Valley, these fights and the videos surrounding them are seen as an acceptable source of entertainment–from kids to teens and even adults. I think this problem may be more deeply rooted in cultural norms amongst different races and classes, as well as online ethics, and I think the reporters approached this instance a bit more shallow than I expected.
I feel the same way as others who have expressed both concern and curiosity when videos like this appear. I am now reflecting on plenty of fight videos I have seen and what is lingering with me the most is she sheer brutality of some of the fights. You are so right when you say that our devices and our connectedness through social media plays a big role in the overall culture of being bystanders and coconspirators of bullying posted online. This reminded me of my post where I witnessed a fight outside Venice high school just last Friday. In my situation I witnessed kids being more concerned about recording the fight then trying to intervene and help the situation. This double standard has me in a state of loss. Kids will be kids, I don’t know much else to think about it now. I just hope schools host seminars and events that help them reflect about their online lives ad what they share/post. Bullying isn’t going to go away, if anything it is now much more prevalent and visible.
I definitely can see how social media has perpetuated bullying and has made it doable across multiple platforms. It’s not just the playground bully anymore, as people can start crazy online smear campaigns that magnify embarrassment and humiliation. The fact that people pull out their phones to record fights or other scenes of confrontation is just an indication of the world we live in today, run by technology. Admittedly, I’m also guilty of thinking some of these instances are funny or reposting vines or tweets. However, like you and all the other commenters, reading Boyd’s perspective and how this sort of stuff perpetuates cyberbullying was really an eye-opener for me.