National Geographic

EMBARK | THE BIG IDEAIF THE ANTAGONIZERSON SOCIAL MEDIA FACENO REPERCUSSIONS, THATENCOURAGES THE GROWTHOF AGGRESSION, INCIVILITY,AND JUST PLAIN MEANNESS.``````space and work together efectively, more so thanmost other beings. It’s in part how we’ve becomesuch a successful species.But the “who” that constitutes “whom we meet”in this system has been changing. Today the whocan include more virtual, social media friendsthan physical ones; more information absorbed viaTwitter, Facebook, and Instagram than in physicalsocial experiences; and more pronouncements fromad-sponsored 24-hour news outlets than from con-versations with other human beings.We live in complicated societies structured aroundpolitical and economic processes that generatemassive inequality and disconnection between us.This division alone leads to a plethora of prejudicesand blind spots that segregate people. The ways wesocially interact, especially via social media, aremulti plying exactly at a time when we are increas-ingly divided. What may be the consequences?Historically, we have maintained harmony by dis-playing compassion and geniality, and by fosteringconnectedness when we get together. Anonymityand the lack of face-to-face interaction on socialmedia platforms remove a crucial part of the equa-tion of human sociality—and that opens the door tomore frequent, and severe, displays of aggression.Being an antagonizer, especially to those you don’thave to confront face-to-face, is easier now than it’sever been. If there are no repercussions for it, thatencourages the growth of aggression, incivility, andjust plain meanness on social media platforms.``````SINCE WE’LL CONTINUE to be influenced by whomwe meet virtually, the next question is: Whom do wewant to meet? What kind of society do we want toshape and be shaped by? That is, how do we modifythe whom by which our brains and bodies are beingmolded—and thereby reduce the aggression?Humans are evolutionarily successful becauseour big brains have allowed us to bond together andcooperate in more complex and diverse mannersthan any other animal. The capacity to observe howthe world operates, to imagine how it might improve,and to turn that vision into reality (or at least makethe attempt) is the hallmark of humanity.And therein lies the solution to the problem. Weare equipped with the skill set both to quell aggres-sion and to encourage cohesion.For countless millennia people have acted``````collectively to punish and shame aggressive anti-social actions such as bullying or abuse. On socialmedia, where the troll is remote and anonymous,even the best intentioned individual challenge maydevolve into a shouting match. But confronting thebully with a group action—a reasoned, communalresponse rather than a knee-jerk, solo gesture—canbe more efective at shutting down aggression.Consider the impact of the #MeToo movement,the Time’s Up movement, and the Black Lives Mattermovement. Look at the public pressure brought tobear on media corporations to monitor “fake news”and hate speech.These are excellent examples of how humans canleverage social media to nurture what’s positive andsanction what’s negative.After the mass shooting at Marjory StonemanDouglas High School in Parkland, Florida, activiststudents called out their Twitter trolls and shut themdown. The neo-Nazi rallies have diminished, andsome of the alt-right hate websites have been takenoline—all because thousands of people stood upto them and said, “No more.”Yes, it seems that the world is getting more aggres-sive, but that’s not because we are aggressive at ourcore. It’s because we haven’t been stepping up, inunison, to do the diicult social work our contempo-rary world demands. That means standing up againstbullying, abuse, and aggressive harassment, andfostering pro-social attitudes and actions. In personand on social media, we must do both.``````Agustín Fuentes, who has been a National Geographic explorerand grantee, is the Edmund P. Joyce Professor of Anthropologyat the University of Notre Dame. He has authored numerousbooks, including Race, Monogamy, and Other Lies They Told You:Busting Myths About Human Nature and The Creative Spark:How Imagination Made Humans Exceptional.SOURCE: PEW RESEARCH CENTERWhen the Pew Research Center asked people how theyhandled their most recent exposure to online harass-ment, 61 percent said they ignored it. The rest saidthey made some sort of response; within that group,the top six responses, ranked by popularity at right,ranged from confronting the harasser online to delet-ing or changing the name on their own account online.``````39% did not ignoreonline harassment.Here’s what they did:1. Confronted the person online2. Unfriended/blocked theperson3. Reported the personresponsible to website4. Confronted the person face-to-face or via text/phone call5. Discussed problem online6. Changed username/deleted profile61%ignored it39%Antisocial media