There is a world of toxic crap floating around on the Internet, and it’s all available for us to retweet, comment on, or show public appreciation for. But a few of us have been using our powers for evil…the viral video of a girl crying when her boyfriend ate the rest of her meal comes to mind. People thought that crap was hilarious. And if you were one of them, we have some bad news. You’re cloutlighting.
It’s like gaslighting…but worse and public. Think about it – you’re super upset about something, and THEN a bunch of folks on the Internet come for you because they think your reaction was out of line. Doesn’t sound so great, does it? It happens all the time with prank videos online. And sure…a good, solid prank can be fun – but are we putting people’s emotions on display for all to see?
Just because a bunch of people have shared certain online crap doesn’t make it a worthwhile use of our time and energy. Think about the actual humans involved in the videos you’re sharing. Would they be hurt to see their name on everyone’s Twitter feeds?