Earlier generations grew up with the looming moral dilemma “If your friends jumped off a bridge, would you?” The more pervasive question for today’s youth is: “If someone online pulled a stunt, would you?”
As tempting as it may be to jump on the newest Internet trend, the long-term consequences will likely outlast the temporary clout boost.
Many trends of wreaking havoc in grocery stores have arisen over the years: returning licked ice cream or spat-in Listerine to the shelf, smashing gallons of milk in aisles and unfortunately the list goes on.
Each of these pranks started as single incidents but were quickly copied and spread through viral videos.
The internet hands an unprecedented amount of power and influence to every person who has access to it. Anyone, no matter their geographical location, age or social reach, can post something accessible to millions of other internet users. There are no boundaries of distance or hierarchies of power. It is a democratic forum.
If we think about our historic mediums for mass communication, it used to be that even printing presses — the most common way to spread ideas to broad audiences — had prior restraint, in which all content was previewed and censored by the U.S. government. Today, even major publications — newspapers, magazines, books — go through numerous editors before a final product is published.
Within social media, arguably the most popular publication today, there are no gatekeepers. Besides restrictions against hate speech or offensive content, there are no limitations on what people can post online.
With great power comes great responsibility. Users, both content-creators and consumers alike, should give more thought to how their online activity affects the broader community.
The spread of internet trends has ranged from harmless dances to dangerous pranks. Even if stunts were fake and did not cause harm immediately, the aftermath did. The nature of the internet, especially within meme culture, is to adapt and mimic content.
The “In My Feelings” challenge inspired videos of people dancing to the Drake bop outside moving cars. While the originator, American comedian Shiggy, filmed on vacant suburb roads, others took to the fast-moving freeway. Injuries and accidents followed.
Another example is the Tide Pod challenge — the on-camera consumption of laundry detergent. Many videos were faked, but viewers did not know that. Just a few weeks after the start of the fad, the American Association of Poison Control Centers handled 39 cases of teenagers exposed to detergent packets.
Besides the dangers they pose to viewers, Internet stunts also place the poster in danger. Whether or not the stunt was real, it can be subject to legal punishment.
The Louisiana man who posted a video licking and then returning ice cream to the shelf had a receipt proving he bought the carton, but he was still charged for “unlawful posting of criminal activity for notoriety and publicity.” He was arrested and detained. Food tampering can be considered a felony.
At your fingertips, with each post you post or share, you have the ability to spread mayhem or quell it. Question what behavior you may be inspiring or encouraging with your online activity. Challenge what your peers may be inciting. Trends can only be popularized by people’s support and spread of them.
As tempting as it may be to jump on the newest Internet trend, the long-term consequences will likely outlast the temporary clout boost.
Many trends of wreaking havoc in grocery stores have arisen over the years: returning licked ice cream or spat-in Listerine back on the shelf, smashing gallons of milk in aisles and unfortunately the list goes on.
Each of these pranks started as single incidents but were quickly copied and spread through viral videos.
The Internet hands an unprecedented amount of power and influence to every person who has it. Anyone, no matter their geographical location, age or social reach, can post something accessible to millions of other Internet users. There are no boundaries of distance or hierarchies of power. It is a democratic forum.
If we think about our historic mediums for mass communication,, it used to be that even printing presses — the most common way to spread ideas with broad audiences — had prior restraint in which all content was previewed and censored by the government. Today, even major publications — newspapers, magazines, books — go through numerous editors before a final product is put out.
Within social media, arguably the most popular publication today, there are no gatekeepers. Besides restrictions against hate speech or offensive content, there are no limitations on what people can post online.
With great power comes great responsibility. Users, both content-creators and consumers alike, should give more thought to how their online activity affects the broader community.
The spread of Internet trends has ranged from harmless dances to dangerous pranks. Even if stunts were fake and did not cause harm immediately, the aftermath did. The nature of the Internet, especially within meme culture, is to adapt and mimic content.
The “In My Feelings” challenge inspired videos of people dancing to the Drake bop outside moving cars. While the originator American comedian Shiggy filmed on a vacant suburb roads, others took to the fast-moving freeway. Injuries and accidents followed. It became such an epidemic that law enforcement Egypt announced that those found doing the challenge in traffic could face up to a year in jail.
Another example is the Tide Pod challenge — the on-camera consumption of laundry detergent. Many videos often faked, but viewers did not know that. Just a few weeks after the start of the fad, the American Association of Poison Control Centers handled 39 cases of teenagers exposed to detergent packets — the typical number of cases per year is 53.
Besides the dangers it poses to viewers, Internet stunts also place the poster in danger. Whether or not the stunt filmed was real, it is oftentimes subject to legal punishment.
The Louisiana man who posted a video licking then returning ice cream had a receipt proving he bought the carton, but was still charged for “unlawful posting of criminal activity for notoriety and publicity.” Food tampering can be considered a felony.
At your fingertips, with each post you post or share, you have the ability to spread mayhem or quell it. Question what behavior you may be inspiring or encouraging with your online activity. Challenge what your peers may be inciting. Trends can only be popularized by people’s support and spread of them.
