HOW TO AVOID ONLINE LYNCHING

Abstract:

The reason why I chose these sources in particular is that they are in Turkish,

because as an individual, I am well-versed in lynchings in Turkey. Frankly, I think this

problem is at very dangerous levels in Turkey. For this reason, I have consulted these

resources. Moreover, I observed that the sources I chose made point-and-shoots on

the subjects I wanted to touch on. I hope the articles I chose and the article I wrote

were effective for everyone.

Introduction:

Online lynching refers to any hostile, harassing, or harmful behavior directed

towards another individual or group over social media or other online platforms.

These actions may have a significant impact on the target person's safety, reputation,

and even mental health. Online lynching typically happens when a group of

individuals band together to repeatedly share or comment on the same message

against the target person (Okur, 2021). These actions, which might have catastrophic

consequences, may involve making violent threats, insults, or remarks against the

target individual. Online lynching is a significant issue in contemporary internet

culture, and its frequency is rising. Therefore, human beings should find solutions to

avoid from online lynching because these behaviors can negatively affect the

reputation, safety, and even psychological health of the targeted person.

Body Paragraphs:

Online lynching has grown to be a serious issue in contemporary online culture. It

describes conduct that is unfriendly, damaging, or harassing toward an individual or

group on social media or other online platforms. The target person's safety,
reputation, and even mental health may be significantly impacted by these actions.

When several users post or comment on the same message repeatedly, it may result

in an online lynching. These behaviors could involve abusive threats, derogatory

remarks, or target-specific language. It is feasible to prevent internet lynching,

nevertheless. If some precautions are taken, great steps will be taken to solve this

problem.

The rules and regulations that establish the behavior expectations for online

communities must first exist. This can assist online platforms in establishing terms of

use and monitoring their execution. Assisting those who are subject to online

lynching requires the availability of online support groups and services. For instance,

some social media platforms have a filtering feature. With this feature, unwanted

words or sentences can be deleted automatically. Second, human beings must

regulate their online conduct. This means that they take care to avoid hurting or

upsetting other people with the content and comments they post. In addition, it's

crucial to report violent behavior when people see it online and take action to diffuse

the conflict. In this second pathway, empathy plays a big role. Therefore, by

empathizing, statements or comments that will offend other people should be

avoided. Thirdly, media literacy needs to be given more consideration. In order to

recognize reliable information, validate sources, and stay secure in the digital world,

media literacy is a crucial ability. To prevent online lynching, people must educate

themselves and those around them on media literacy. It is necessary to set aside the

hatred behind the virtual lynching and act wisely. For this, influencers need to raise

awareness of users about media literacy. Finally, people must prevent freedom of

expression from turning into freedom of hate. People have a right to freedom of

expression on social media, blogs, and some virtual chats. However, every right has
a limit. Because of the fact that people have freedom of expression, they can make

comments that may offend, offend, mentally harm or damage their reputation. Stress,

anger and distance are among the reasons for this. People can have stressful times

in their daily lives and when they enter social media, they relieve their nerves and

stress by getting angry or lynching others. People should be aware of their own

stopping points and be aware that the other person also has feelings. If people look

at hatred and freedom of expression from another angle, the collective hatred behind

the virtual lynching has the ability to unite other users as if it were a common

demonstration (Demir & Özcan, 2021). In other words, hate is such an emotion that it

has a unifying power beyond love. Although lynching generally occurs as a result of

an individual defense mechanism, other people can also participate in this lynching

culture. The most painful example of this can be seen with the phenomenon Taha

Duymaz, who lost his life by being under the rubble as a result of the earthquakes

that took place in Turkey recently. Taha used to shoot food videos with limited

resources due to financial difficulties, but people on social media were jealous of his

fame and began to criticize Taha harshly. Later, Taha lost his life in an event that

shook people deeply. At the end of this, it was observed that people felt extremely

remorseful for this lynching and even though Taha is not alive, they recently sent their

apologies in the comments section on social media. With this example, it can be

stated that lynching can deeply shake both the perpetrator and the person exposed.

Conclusion:

To sum up, social media is becoming a more and more commonplace place for

lynchings, so many various steps must be made to stop this from happening. First

and foremost, social media sites must inform their followers about potential lynchings

and warn them that such conduct is not acceptable. Additionally, stronger guidelines
developed by social media platforms can aid in the abolition of the lynching culture.

The most crucial step, though, is for each person to take responsibility for their own

actions and to treat other users with courtesy and understanding. Social media

platforms can develop into a safer and more encouraging space in this way.

References:

Demir, S. T. & Özcan, A. (2021). Sosyal Medya ve Linç Kültürü: Sanal

Nedenler Gerçek Sonuçlar. İletişim Kuram ve Araştırma Dergisi, 2021 (56),
1-15 . DOI: 10.47998/ikad.957544

Okur, A. Sosyal Medyada Linç Olgusu: Gençler Üzerine Bir

Araştırma. Yüksek Lisans Tezi, Kocaeli Üniversitesi, 2021