Like it or not, social media is a fixture as a communication vehicle. It means instant contact with individuals or massive numbers all at the same time. Useful on so many levels and amazing, but the media has issues surrounding security, anonymity, higher risk of being misunderstood, and obnoxious behavior. To play nicely, etiquette using the media comes down to common sense—the things you learned in kindergarten.
Keep It
Relevant, Clear, and Short
Respond to the question, statement, or image, and avoid adding an extraneous rant—unless it’s entertaining. That also means you have to interpret the prompt accurately. Rabbit trails are great in live conversations, but annoying on timeline feeds. Choosing the right words can make a world of difference in how the message is received. Before you hit the send button, reread it and ask yourself, “Is this really what I want to say?” Thesaurus.com is your friend. Unless it’s an article, a website link, or a blog, which the reader can recognize up front, keep the comments short and to the point. “Brevity is the soul of wit (Hamlet, Act 2, Shakespeare).”
Review Prior
Responses
Read former responses. Get a better idea of the various positions in the discussion. You may decide that it’s not worth jumping into the fray. If you have to take a side, you have some options. You can spend a lot of time, energy, and emotional capital on defending your position with people who are not going to change their minds no matter what you say. What a waste! Really, when the post is too much, understand that stupid or crazy may be fixable, but certainly not on a post. If want to opine and you don’t want to get into back-and-forth squabble, you can just click an icon.
Keep It Civil
Humor, sarcasm, and being snarky can be funny and entertaining when it’s obviously intended to be entertaining, but not when it is crude or a personal attack targeting another responder. You don’t need to vilify someone who does not agree with you. Address the issue without slinging mud at your friend’s friend. You’re not likely to change anybody’s mind about something—especially very controversial issues (baseball, politics, religion). When it gets too hot, it’s time to just delete it from your feed, and maybe even unfriend someone who keeps posting stuff that causes your ears to blow steam.
Images Speak Loud
While we’re on the subject of civility, consider the images. Who really wants to see someone you know in a hospital bed with tubes sticking out from every orifice imaginable? We get enough of that on TV but we know it’s fake. You want shock value to evoke pity, but can we at least be sensitive to the person who may not want the world to see all that drama? Recently I made a comment on a post that was railing against porn. I agreed with the sentiment. I commented that the accompanying risqué image intended as an example furthered the very thing the post was criticizing. The person posting it became very defensive and I used my delete option. Gotta love that button!
Check the Accuracy
You don’t want to look like a fool or ignoramus (not that I’m name-calling), and fake news is often made to look real. Information for fact checking is readily available, but get your information from reliable sources. If you can’t fact check, at least leave some wiggle room with words like maybe, sometimes, and possibly, or phrases like “I think” or “in my opinion.”
Grammar Matters
Unless you are posting in another language or to a specific audience, keep it in standard English and spelled correctly within reason. Typos do happen (the bane of writers) and there’s grace for that, but it’s hard to respect a post that needs translation within the same language. If this is a weak area, you can always write it on a word document, spell check and grammar check, fix what needs fixing, copy and post. It’s a bit of effort and you decide if it’s worth it. Oh, and remember that writing in all caps means you are SHOUTING.
Delete, Snooze, Block, Unfriend
If you don’t want to look like a jerk-by-association because someone else’s irritating response on your feed may imply that you agree with it, just get rid of it. Delete, snooze, block, and unfriend are okay. You have options. Don’t feel guilty when you have to use one of them. You are in control of your account.
We must remember that the internet is public and permanent. I can’t emphasize this enough. Be very careful posting images that identify children and their locations. Pedophiles are out there. Posting your vacation plans can mean an empty house and potential burglary. Images that embarrass or degrade someone are not only in bad taste, they are hurtful. Like I said, it’s all common sense. No condemnation. Just play nicely—or else! (hehehehehe)
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Copyright 2019 by Eva Benevento. All rights reserved.