One of the most important things that I learned this week from the material provided was that there will be more hate on the internet as time goes on. As we are getting new apps, social media platforms, etc. that gives online trolls more opportunities to speak freely, and get away with it since they are behind a computer screen. Misinformation, manipulation, trolling, etc. will become more common, and persist. It is in human nature to criticize others, and it is hard to realize what it actually does to someone when they get hateful comments, and holding the troll accountable is hard to do online.
Another important thing that I learned from this week is how to check if your source is credible. Although it can sound like a credible organization or website, it is important to fact-check it, and look up what others say about the source. I learned that you can’t trust what the source says about itself, and just doing a simple google search is enough to help you find the information you need. How many members are part of the organization, how much money they put into it, etc. are some things to look out for when comparing sources on their credibility.
I know someone personally who has experienced online bullying. He ended up trying different methods to see what would help; therapy, rehab, dropping out of high school, etc. In addition, he had a few mental illnesses that he had to deal with on-top of that, and the online bullying made things worse. Today, he is doing way better than he was in high school, and I think what helped was just growing up, and even getting out of the high school environment since around that time kids are extremely judgmental, and can be really hurtful. I would say talking to someone about it can help tremendously. Even if they don’t know how to help exactly, getting it off your chest, and seeking help can be a huge relief.
Since I used Tik Tok a lot, I wanted to look more into how they are stopping online trolling. Just from watching the videos on there, and being active, I can see that a lot of users can get hate, and false information can be tried to be spread around quickly. Tik Tok is having a more strict guideline on the type of language that can be used on the site. In addition, they are closely monitoring the type of content that users post. White supremacy groups, outright hate speech, Nazi paraphernalia, and QAnon; the pro-Trump conspiracy theory are groups, and topics that are being closely monitored, or banned so that the negativity, and hate is not spread on Tik Tok.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/21/technology/tiktok-qanon.html
