Being harassed on Twitter is never fun. And it can happen to you whether you’re already a decently well-known figure with that blue check mark of authenticity, an up-and-comer in the world of online witticisms, or if you came up with a single tweet that blew up beyond your wildest expectations. Or, of course, if you’re a woman.
I have to deal with so much stupid on social media, it makes me want to quit nearly every site I’m on at least once a week. Surely you’ve had this feeling as well — perhaps it’s because of an annoying friend, a trend that refuses to die, or some political discourse packed with racism and idiocy.
Social media is great for connecting people, sharing news and information, and giving your grandmother the opportunity to air her political opinions unfettered. Unfortunately, its anonymity and widespread reach makes it an easy way for people to spread hate, and since Donald Trump’s election in 2016, social media users have noticed a worrisome increase in online hate speech.
A new tool recently released by a research team at MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory offers a novel way to fight online harassment: getting your trusted friends to help keep unwanted emails out of your account.
Harassment and abuse on social media freaking suck. What also sometimes sucks: various platforms' inability or reluctance to effectively deal with it. But sometimes you've got to focus on what you can control and let go of the rest, which in this case means reporting harassment.
Everyone knows that Twitter is horrible at fighting harassment, but The Daily Beast recently explained why, quoting anonymous former employees who blame understaffed support teams, inadequate training, and a catch-all response flowchart that doesn't allow for common sense or individual judgement. They also revealed that reports from verified users get moved to a second, shorter work queue.
Every organisation has their sexual harassers, and their identities rarely stay truly secret. Somebody knows, somebody talks, but the people in a position to do something about it -- bystanders, higher-ups -- often figure it isn't their problem. This has to stop.
If you have a public Instagram account, then anyone else with an Instagram account can currently comment on your photos. That's great sometimes, but as we all know, the internet is can be a pretty dismal place, and letting anyone comment on your pics can occasionally (or not so occasionally) mean that you get a bunch of abusive or offensive comments on your pictures from a bunch of strangers.
It's not a secret that people are mean on the internet and, if you live your life online in any appreciable way, you are most likely going to experience some sort of online harassment, and it will most likely suck. There are, however, some steps you can take to bounce back.
The internet is one of the world's greatest inventions. It's also sometimes used by some real jerks to do some pretty crappy stuff. If you've ever had to deal with online harassment, or are just worried you might, Speak Up & Stay Safe(r) teaches the basics of dealing with jerks online.
