Passage: “Is Facebook Making You Mean?”
“Ummmmm…ew?” This statement may not seem like a harmful comment, but think about that mixed with a whole barrage of snide and sarcastic comments swallowing a picture you posted on Facebook from your family vacation. The picture was posted just to share an experience with others—who knew it would also cause such hatred from all those “friends” on Facebook? In the article “Is Facebook Making You Mean?,” by Lauren Tarshis one Facebook user named Maya experienced this bullying firsthand. All she tried to do was post a friendly family vacation photo with Mickey Mouse, and she ended up with a line of insults. The article claims that Facebook is a catalyst for communication and sometimes that turns negative. Facebook is built around the idea that people should be able to project themselves and speak their minds, but it seems like some people have taken that privilege too far. I believe that it is important to protect yourself from people with cruel intentions on the internet and Facebook by being selective about who you befriend, how you post pictures, and guidance for how to effectively communicate online. The biggest issue with Facebook is the fact that people feel entitled to comment about everything. Most comments I have seen are not hateful in nature—most comments are “status updates” about your laundry list and other insignificant things, but all this freedom to express EVERY SINGLE idea leads to some really negative conversations and comments as well. The statistics from I-Safe found in the article “Is Facebook Manking You Mean?” states that 58% of kids say someone has been mean or hurtful to them online, and 53% of kids say they’ve been mean or hurtful to another person online. These statistics prove that over half of people online have cruel intentions or are more likely to express their negativity online. These shocking statistics tell me that we all need to be more selective about