I read a blog post that was on a group page yesterday that made me do a lot of thinking about double standards. http://www.hippiesbeautyandbooksohmy.com/2012/08/bye-bye-blogging.html.
Everyone who knows me is aware that my level of tolerance of bullying is zero, offline and online. This is yet another sad exit from blogging. It certainly solidifies the notion that targets everywhere; from the Atlantic to the Pacific and across the border.
The double standard of bullying
Oddly enough, about three weeks ago I did a social media cleanup after witnessing a variety of comments online that almost provoked me to shut everything down. I didn’t want to shut everything down because of ignorance.
With that said, I simply cannot tolerate vulgarities, such as the word “slut”, when relating to the competition. Even though the point made may be valid, it’s just crusty and unprofessional.
Ah, but then we have another angle. The most poignant angle of all. The supporters that supported the way the topic was presented and not for one minute said, “If you worded it more professionally, I would have stood by your comments.” Let’s just say there was applause and lots of noise. The best one that I noticed was a woman, who works for a specific company whose income is dependent on those “sluts”, was also supporting the brash statements made. I had to give my head a shake.
Did any of these supporters take a moment to realize that the people the post was referring to was also watching them cheer and howl with delight? There are decent ways to approach things people and supporting the verbiage was simply PATHETIC.
“Again, fantastic post!”, many said. What’s so brilliant about calling people sluts? I call it bullying.
There’s a saying that I say daily which is, “Be kind to those while climbing up the ladder because they won’t be so kind to you on the way down.”
There are some people out there that have carte blanche to say anything they choose and will receive support from their following for the awful things they say. For example, look at many of our comedians in show business.
Let me ask you something. Is bullying OK because someone has a high popularity score? Ellen Degeneres doesn’t have to do it, why should you?
Have a Triple Standard Why Don’t Ya?
To end this rant, I know a person who has been blacklisted for making one slip of the tongue on a social media outlet. In fact, the person who decided to blacklist this individual also condoned the above “slut” rant. Talk about a triple standard. Is there a triple standard? Well there is one now. MEOW! **hypocrite**
Face it folks. Mel Gibson still makes movies for millions. How many blunders is he at now? I’m so happy this person didn’t do something drastic or we may have witnessed our first “Passion of the Christ” social media moment.
The Famous “Blacklist”
I found out that I was part of a “list” that was prepared by a few social media influencers and distributed to PR companies and brands. It’s a blacklist. Ugh, so high school.
Why am I on it? No clue because they don’t know me from Job. I will ensure those who did create the list that you won’t stop me. Furthermore, your “secret” bullying tactics, like list creation, won’t intimidate me either! 🙂 I take pride in knowing that this “list” was developed with a tablespoon of jealousy and a cup of ignorance.
In light of this, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking. Honestly, I don’t care if I end up on the s***list either because I know my worth, myself, and my integrity to stand up for what I believe is true and just.
The demise of brands working with social media marketing will quickly spiral out of control and cease to exist if this sort of bullying behavior continues. It’s bullying, it’s stupid, and it’s wrong. Just plain wrong.
It’s like the renovator who comes to your door and tells you a bunch of wild stories about the competition. There is always something that just doesn’t seem right, so you research, and end up choosing the competition instead. I hope those “sluts” pull up their socks, starts charging for the work, and gets every brand opportunity out there.
There is a level of competition in this business like any other business out there. The more people keep their eye on their brand and eyes off the competition, the more ethical social media marketing will become.
For myself, this is the last time I’m going to address this subject that’s so silly, yet so important for the benefit of everyone. You can unfollow, unlike, and ignore, I’m here to stay while I go to bed at night knowing that I haven’t bullied anyone but cheered them on!
