The Ugly Face of Gossip

Ahh.. the comfort of sharing a few laughs with the ones we love, as we sit huddled up telling friends other people’s misfortunes. Saying bad things about other people feels good, too good

It’s called gossip

But is gossip necessary for survival or is it just something we use to pass time and gain popularity by sharing someone or somethings deepest, darkest, secrets.

According to an article in the Telegraph, Gossip is what makes us human.

It’s what differentiates us from animals.

-R.Dunba

Robin Dunba who is a  professor of evolutionary psychology at Oxford University says that we need to gossip in order to find out who we can or can’t trust.. essentially going back to our basic needs for survival.

Gossip also aids social climbing.

An article in Psychologies on “Why we love to gossip” says that we talk about our rivals’ failings and disasters and we enjoy taking pleasure in the misfortune of others.

It’s hard to hide a smile when we learn that the sister-in-law we can’t stand is having a tough time – even if it’s with a twinge of shame. The act of gossiping about someone, lets say that sister-in-law, with another person,  can bring the two gossipers together….creating a social bond.

a bond that can maybe even help one’s own social capital.

But  gossip can have an ugly side and I think this is the main reason why it is dangerous and unnecessary for people to engage in.

The rise of anonymous social networks have created the perfect breeding ground for gossip to flourish.

In late 2007, a social network called “Juicy Campus” started going viral at a several different universities. The network encouraged people to talk about others  while remaining entirely anonymous.

“Juicy campus” isn’t the only app.

According to  an article on CNN of “Why anonymous social networks are scary”, apps such as “whisper” or “secret”, encourage personal confessions, sexual, and racial slurs.

“I can tell you that my feed alone, which comes from a network of friends in my iPhone’s address book and “friends of friends,” is full of caustic gossip about venture capitalists, sexism in tech, and a healthy amount of explicit sexual fantasies”, says one Secret user.

Most recently, there has been an controversial app come out that has been banned across many campuses in the U.S.  It’s called Yik Yak.

The app became immediately popular and within months after release, Yik Yak was available at universities across the U.S.

“I have been defamed, my reputation besmirched. I have been sexually harassed and verbally abused. I am about ready to hire a lawyer,” said Margaret Crouch, professor of philosophy at Eastern Michigan University, after learning of comments posted about her on Yik Yak.

Yik Yak is an anonymous application where students post comments and gossip about fellow professors, classmates, and friends. Some users have even used this application to spread threats across campus. According to an article in the New York Times, Since being introduced, the app been used to issue threats of mass violence on more than a dozen college campuses, including the University of North Carolina, Michigan State University and Penn State.

“I’m gonna [gun emoji] the school at 12:15 p.m. today” said an anonymous user before being found and arrested at the universities dorm, an example of how gossip apps are extremely dangerous.

Gossip is also a form of bullying, a form found on the internet and social media sites everywhere.

According to the article in the New York Times, anonymous apps have been”increasingly used by young people in a really intimidating and destructive way.” It allows for unlimited gossip with absolutely NO strings attached. Almost too good to be true.

Probably everyone can say that they have once been a victim of bullying, be it through the internet or in real life. No one is excluded from gossip as teens, adults, celebrities and even the president are subjected to this form of social conduct.

Gossiping about someone can result in harming someones else’s reputation and spreading false ideas about someone… and a tarnished reputation is hard to recover from.

There have been many cases where online gossip has caused depression, sadness and worst of all.. death

Jessica Lainey who was 16 when she hung herself was just another victim of online gossip trolls.

But Lainey isn’t the only one..

Dave Smith said his daughter, Hannah, 14, died on Friday in Lutterworth, Leicestershire, after being “cyberbullied” on the question-and-answer website ask.fm. This site allows users to send messages without their identity being disclosed, a concept for apps that sounds all too familiar.

Online apps which allow for gossip to breed are quite dangerous and can lead to many children as well as adults who already suffer from low self -esteem, to take their own lives.

Internet education portal Onlinecollege.org recently rounded up stats from a number of press and research outlets to compile the graphic below, looking at how connected young people are today and how prevalent cyberbullying has become

The problem with gossiping, and these networks or apps that allow for anonymous posts is that you can ruin someones reputation with the touch of a button.

Even investor Marc Andreessen who has invested in every start up over the recent years, publicly stated his dislike for the anonymous gossip apps.

“There are other systems in past & present designed to encourage negative behavior, tearing people down, making fellow souls sad,”Andreessen tweeted. “Such experiments start out as naughty fun, end with broken hearts and ruined lives. In the end everyone regrets participating in them.

Now, more then ever, we must find a way to combat this type of communication and stop the gossip …. before it turns ugly.