Social Media Outrage/Cancel Culture

[Jeff Lebowski]

In reference to these two posts in the MAGA thread:

This quote from the WaPo editorial is the type of stuff that pisses me off:

The executive order was signed on Friday afternoon. The WaPo writes an article the VERY NEXT DAY asking why hasn't the church provided an immediate response. W.T.H?

The church PR department then releases a very simple statement and now people on Facebook are freaking out because it wasn't strong enough. Umm, it's likely that the FP and Q12 met in their regular Thursday temple meeting and then dispersed to various assignments by Friday morning. The expectation that church leadership should be responding publicly as part of the 24-hour news cycle is beyond irrational.

Unlike many of these SJWs that populate my social media feeds with outrage porn, the Church has actually walked the walk wrt providing assistance to refugees. When an organization donates $5m here and $5m there, pretty soon it starts to add up to some real money. To say nothing of the "I Was A Stranger" program that is being implemented locally at the Stake level. Meanwhile, the snowflakes sign on-line petitions and stew in their petty indignation. Drives me nuts too.

This is a perfect example of my biggest pet peeve with social media: people falling over themselves trying to show off how outraged they are. And by golly, if you are not equally outraged, there is something wrong with you. The format of FB (carefully controlled friend lists) ensures that posting some outrage porn generally guarantees a raucous round of agreement from your personal echo chamber. It is also a staple of the comment section of any news outlet. This phenomenon leads to lives and careers ruined by online shaming. I think it also lies at the core of our current obsession with police brutality. And to a certain degree, it fuels the political divide that led to the election of Trump.

Michael Austin posted an interesting essay on the phenomenon recently in By Common Consent:

https://bycommonconsent.com/2016/12/...cheap-outrage/

It’s called “outrage porn” for a good reason. Like pornography, it provides all of the sensations of a strong emotion without incurring any of the costs (time, relationship building, risk of rejection). It briefly satisfies our need to experience sensation but does not lead to meaningful engagement with anything. It is risk free, and, ultimately, it is an addiction that works against real human interaction.

And I do it. All the time. When I come across something stupid that Ann Coulter said, I forward it to my Facebook feed so that all of my friends can laugh at what stupid things conservatives believe. When I find an obscure news story about the Republican county clerk of some Southern village with 25 people and one Quick Trip, who says that Hillary Clinton is actually an alien impostor from the planet Exxar 4, I’m all over it. “New Republican Foreign Policy,” I announce, as I hit the “share” button. Mission accomplished. Outrage felt.

And this is how 300,000,000 people have managed to construct two mutually exclusive, epistemically self-contained echo chambers that are incapable of interacting with each other except through pointless insults in comment sections. And we are broken.

[Clark Addison]

In reference to these two posts in the MAGA thread:





This is a perfect example of my biggest pet peeve with social media: people falling over themselves trying to show off how outraged they are. And by golly, if you are not equally outraged, there is something wrong with you. The format of FB (carefully controlled friend lists) ensures that posting some outrage porn generally guarantees a raucous round of agreement from your personal echo chamber. It is also a staple of the comment section of any news outlet. This phenomenon leads to lives and careers ruined by online shaming. I think it also lies at the core of our current obsession with police brutality. And to a certain degree, it fuels the political divide that lead to the election of Trump.

Michael Austin posted an interesting essay on the phenomenon recently in By Common Consent:

https://bycommonconsent.com/2016/12/...cheap-outrage/

What the hell does Michael Austin have against QuikTrips??? They are awesome! At least spell it right.

[Bo Diddley]

I have a good mix of conservative and liberal friends on Facebook. It's been interesting to watch my liberal friends respond to Trump. It's nearly identical to how my conservative friends responded the last eight years. I remember my liberal friends saying that the conservatives were fear-mongering. Just this morning one of my conservative friends said that the media is fear-mongering.

These people are two sides of the same coin. Many are so far out there that if the political spectrum were a ring, they'd be touching.

[Shaka]

The Donald lives in the head of a good portion of my Facebook friends.

[Northwestcoug]

I am pretty close to ignoring a couple of friends on Facebook, who share multiple outrage porn memes everyday. The only reason I haven't ignored one yet is because he has interesting pets and I like the pictures he posts of them. But he better start posting more pics soon!

I am hoping that the saving grace of current american politics is that the majority of those 300 million people aren't addicted to outrage porn. Maybe the hysterics will subside, and the refractory period of outrage porn will be too long for many to get any continual benefit from it. Please let this be so.

[creekster]

I agree the outrage is out of control. But I enjoy reading FB (I almost never post) for the entertainment value.

[Uncle Ted]

I have a good mix of conservative and liberal friends on Facebook. It's been interesting to watch my liberal friends respond to Trump. It's nearly identical to how my conservative friends responded the last eight years. I remember my liberal friends saying that the conservatives were fear-mongering. Just this morning one of my conservative friends said that the media is fear-mongering.

These people are two sides of the same coin. Many are so far out there that if the political spectrum were a ring, they'd be touching.

Time to start using Bitcoin and become an Libertarian.

[Uncle Ted]

The Donald lives in the head of a good portion of my Facebook friends.

Rent free?

[myboynoah]

So is CS now some kind of porn site?

[Shaka]

Rent free?

I left out that part.

[Uncle Ted]

So is CS now some kind of porn site?

Yeah, why do think all the corporate firewalls started blocking it?

[Pelado]

The Donald lives in the head of a good portion of my Facebook friends.

Rent free?

I left out that part.

Seems like he's living in their heads and collecting rent. Quite the real estate mogul.

[BlueK]

I have a good mix of conservative and liberal friends on Facebook. It's been interesting to watch my liberal friends respond to Trump. It's nearly identical to how my conservative friends responded the last eight years. I remember my liberal friends saying that the conservatives were fear-mongering. Just this morning one of my conservative friends said that the media is fear-mongering.

These people are two sides of the same coin. Many are so far out there that if the political spectrum were a ring, they'd be touching.

The two-party political system has failed. The only thing that matters to so many is fighting the other side.

[Uncle Ted]

The two-party political system has failed.

Yes, time for a third party... of course, the system is rigged to only allow two.

[BigFatMeanie]

In reference to these two posts in the MAGA thread:





This is a perfect example of my biggest pet peeve with social media: people falling over themselves trying to show off how outraged they are. And by golly, if you are not equally outraged, there is something wrong with you. The format of FB (carefully controlled friend lists) ensures that posting some outrage porn generally guarantees a raucous round of agreement from your personal echo chamber. It is also a staple of the comment section of any news outlet. This phenomenon leads to lives and careers ruined by online shaming. I think it also lies at the core of our current obsession with police brutality. And to a certain degree, it fuels the political divide that lead to the election of Trump.

Michael Austin posted an interesting essay on the phenomenon recently in By Common Consent:

https://bycommonconsent.com/2016/12/...cheap-outrage/

As you pointed out, it's not enough to simply disagree with an action or policy. Nay, one must be outraged!

And if you are not outraged at the same things that outrage me then you are clearly un-American, un-Christian, an apologist for evil, and an enemy to all that is just and virtuous and good.