Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me. Not sure that Beth Tweddle or Stan Collymore would agree with that.
Twitter trolls reared their ugly heads once again last week – with Beth subject to abuse during a Sky Sports News Q&A session, which was meant to be promoting women in sport; and Stan facing offensive messages as a result of him suggesting a footballer may have dived to earn a penalty. (I don’t know much about football, but pretty sure that footballers are prone to the odd dive or two...)
And while Beth has handled the abuse from Twitter trolls graciously, and Stan has now reactivated his Twitter account after initially taking it down – you can’t help but question the potential lasting impact that incidents likes these have, not just on the targeted individuals, but on social media itself.
Yes we live in a world of free speech, but should that mean, as a result of today’s technology, that we can target individuals in this way? Happily, there do appear to be ramifications for this kind of harassment with two people who sent abusive tweets to campaigner Caroline Criado-Perez and MP Stella Creasy last year, being jailed on Friday. But plenty would argue that Twitter could do more to report and manage this form of bullying; for many cases such as these will only serve to raise concern about interacting so openly online.
As PR consultants we encourage our clients to engage with their target audiences across a range of channels, including social media. It’s a powerful tool that allows them to learn, communicate and build support, but it comes with its own pitfalls. Sticks and stones may well break bones, but, as Collymore and Tweddle will vouch, words can certainly be hurtful. Fortunately, damage can be mitigated through careful strategic planning, in-depth research and timely delivery. And, of course, some comfort can be taken from Twitter’s real time element – what’s news today is often quickly forgotten tomorrow.
Sam Kandiyali
Director
