“Did you hear about #oomf? #whataloser”
“She’s so ugly! Hello, plastic surgery puhleez?”
The one and only Twitter. Every high school student has one and although many students use this social network to share quirky hashtags and hourly updates about their lives, this website can also act as an easy way to ruin someone’s day.
When Twitter was created, its original intent was to draw incessant Facebookers to a new website where they can post millions of statuses that can correspond with trending topics. Although Twitter started out innocent, like any other social network it has become the melting pot for cruel comments, dirty spam tweets, and supposed “twatching” by coaches and administrators.
As a twitter account holder myself, It’s hard to ignore the negative hashtags such as #NOVASluts and #UgliestGirls. Just two days ago, I watched a girl scream and cry over a tweet that had revealed information that was only for her to know. It’s impossible to blame every Twitter user though due to the fact that many are innocent and use Twitter only to fulfill hours of boredom. But, it is quite obvious some have taken their words too far and are on the line between having fun and cyber-bullying.
Every since I was young, I remember the long assemblies about the Anti-Bullying cause. Every kid would sit in boredom and doze off, knowing that we had heard the same speech every year since we had started school at age five. As times change though, it seems that bullying has decreased, but it hasn’t. Like the rest of society, technology is the new route that is taken in order to take revenge on your worst enemy.
Cyber-bullying has become a large issue over the past couple of years. According to recent statistics from the i-Safe Foundation, over 25 percent of teenagers have been bullied online repeatedly while only one in ten tell an adult that it is happening. If I were a parent, I would be concerned. With the increase in teen suicide do to similar situations, parents should watch their teens, while not invading personal privacy. I’m not implying that parents need to glue themselves to their child’s Twitter page, but keeping an eye out for bullying could help decrease unnecessary comments about innocent students. With the negative use of Twitter and the increase of individuals being called out about personal issues, it would not be surprising to hear about a fight, or even worse, in the near future.
The most interesting part about Twitter is that when fights occur, many teenagers “re-tweet” and eventually join in while joining “#TeamJohn” or “#TeamJane” to show support for whoever they agree with. In real life, this would be better known as a mob. I can admit that I too have been one of the many who reads these fights and can’t help but laugh while forming opinions on the sidelines, but it’s wrong. Sometimes these fights are fake and nothing to worry about, but when students are legitimately putting each other on “blast”, things start to get out of hand.
I talked to some of my friends about their experiences, and one of them revealed that she had sent a picture of a girl who ripped her pants and put it on Twitter as a joke. When she realized what she had done, she took it down immediately because of guilt and worry that the girl would see it. The problem is though, that many people wouldn’t think twice about what they are posting and in turn cause anger and sadness from fellow students.
Twitter is not all bad. Its original purpose does still exist and has only grown due to the recent increase in its users. But in general, no matter how angry or vengeful teenagers feel, they should watch what they say, because one day that twenty-word tweet could cause you to wake up to a keyed car or a few new “mentions” that you aren’t too happy about.
