The stories about online shaming in this book shock me to the core.
Don’t Joke!
Before entering an flight to Africa a woman makes a (very distasteful) joke about AIDS to her 170 followers. On arrival in Africa she was the most hated person alive; she had journalist waiting for her in the airport to capture her reaction when she turned on her phone and realize the shit storm she has unintentionally had started.
Two friends joke between themselves about “big” dongles on 10th row of a tech conference. A person in front of them is not as amused by the jokes posts a picture of them online. A few minutes later they are both out of a jobs and just at the starting point of the shit fest to come.
To me the most frightening aspect of online shaming is the speed of which someone can go from living a normal life to being totally annihilated socially, professionally, and privately.
Notes & Highlights
📝 “I’m going to get you fired!” vs. “I’m going to rape you!”. Shaming comments follows cultural & gender norms; Men are expected to be employed and the highest degradation of a women is rape. (A bit uneven maybe? 🤔)
📝 “What the first page (on Google) looks like determines what people think of you”. There are now companies that offer “reputation clean-ups” on the web. Very handy after being shamed!
📝 Your explanation or apology will never get the attention of the original mistake or misjudgment. Forever alone!!😨
📝 ”Facebook is where you lie to your friends and Twitter is where you tell the truth to strangers.” 😂
⭐️ TAKEAWAY:
Maybe we are “creating a more conformist, conservative age” where “We are defining the boundaries of normality by tearing apart people outside it.” I have noticed , since i started this book, that I’m being more careful of how I express myself online…and that kinda sucks.
⚖️ VERDICT:
Scary parts aside – it’s a very funny and seriously entertaining book. It feels really relevant today. You should pick it up!
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ out of 5
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