Reflecting on the topics we discussed in class, it is interesting to see how all of the topics regarding digital citizenship and footprints connect. I think that a lot of these ideas stem from the idea of our rights and responsibilities on the internet. Even though we discussed that the United Nations deemed access to the internet a human right, we still have responsibilities to uphold on the internet. The issue with the internet is that whatever you post, comment, like, or are mentioned in is on the internet forever. I believe that some people, including myself, often forget about this. Thankfully, my social media account has been private since childhood. I cannot imagine the things and photos of myself on the internet if I was not private. This relates to our digital citizenship because anything connected to your identity online will be there forever. This is important for students to learn and understand to make convenient decisions about what they post and reveal about themselves online. In addition, they need to see and understand the consequences of posting something bad or revealing about themselves online, such as cyberbullying.
On the other hand, I believe cyber-shaming and cyber-vigilantism can have both pros and cons. I enjoy that these allow the public to hold others accountable for their actions. For example, we discussed the example of Justine Sacco who made a racist tweet on Twitter (now X). While she was on a plane to Africa, during that time the public had united and got her fired from her job. By the time she landed in Africa, she had lost her job and destroyed her life. This is a prime example of how cyber-shaming and cyber-vigilantism can be beneficial! People should not get away with saying racist things online, so I am glad that there were consequences to her actions. In addition, this is also a good example of why our digital citizenship is important to know about. I do not know about Justine Sacco’s current life, but I can imagine that this singular Tweet has changed her life forever. Going to a “director of the New York-based internet empire InterActive Corp” and then being fired is life-changing (Pilkington, 2013).
However, online cyber-shaming can escalate to targeting people resulting in harassment, bullying, and even sometimes death. In the case of Justin Sacco, the public held her accountable for her actions and served justice. However, in other situations, the public turns into the judge, jury, and sometimes even executioner sadly. Cyberbullying is a severe issue with the internet. Many people around the world lose their lives as a result of suicide from cyber-bullying. How can we decide what is right and wrong all the time? Sometimes things get too extreme in the online space which has detrimental consequences.
Thinking of the effects of cyber-shaming and cyber-vigilantism, it is important to understand digital footprint and citizenship. Your future is dependent on these factors of your online identity. How are you perceived online? Is this someone a prestigious university would want as a student? Are you someone your future workplace would want to be associated with? These are things you have to think about when you post things online. In the age of technology and social media, it is very hard to remain private. Even after deleting something, it may never truly disappear. In our digital world, we must be aware of the dangers of posting on the internet and realize that our digital footprint may never be forgotten.
Jules, I loved your blog post on this! Your point of view was a great perspective! I almost completely agree with everything you said. The only thing that I questioned a bit was whether cyber vigilantism has pros and cons. I don’t believe any group of people attacking one person is ever a pro, regardless of their silly racist decisions! While yes, she deserved to be fired and reprimanded for that, cyber-vigilantism is when a group of people band together and attack someone else. To me, that’s just wrong. No group of civilians has earned that right simply because they’re offended.