The recent backlash to the aggressive social media commentary directed towards certain Mayo players following the All Ireland is welcome and is overdue.
Those who make so many sacrifices for the glory of our county and who gave all of us such a great adventure at a dark time, don’t deserve the level of vitriol directed towards them both by named and un-named people on every kind of platform.
Yes, there needs to be an analysis of what went wrong on September 11. Yes, there are questions that need to be asked and answered.
But there are appropriate forums for this process. These forums can be designed to involve public feedback but this can be achieved in a constructive and meaningful manner as opposed to “click bait” driven social media posts.
There are many public representatives across the county who will identify with that experience of personalised abuse on social media.
There are also many who are not elected to public office but who work with or volunteer with different organisations, who are subject to abuse, because they take on a project that may not be popular with everyone or take a stand on an issue relevant to their organisation - that may have opposition.
Turning back to GAA chat, increasingly, the person is tackled instead of the ball. And social media makes this much easier but often absolves responsibility from those leading the charges.
The Pandemic has shown the good and bad sides of social media. On the plus side, it has made it easier for family and friends to stay in contact. As the world shut down people were able to turn to various platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, TikTok and Instagram to keep in touch with family and friends, to share fun experiences such as the family quizzes but also to gather virtually for the heart-breaking occasions, such as funerals.
However, the pressures of lockdown have resulted in an anger and an impatience that is seen at its worst on these same platforms. Personal opinions and statements are often presented as actual facts. Accusations are often made without back-up or proof. If you doubt this, have a look, not just at some of their own pages, but at media pages that report their activities. View some of the comments beneath these postings - sometimes even the most basic of posts can attract aggression. Protests outside the private homes of politicians and their families is growing.
The increasing level of personal abuse and accusations directed towards public representatives and indeed all public figures, will become a deterrent to people running or being encouraged to run, for office. We take it for granted that our public representatives have thick skins and can take all criticisms on the chin. However, there are limits to what any person can read about themselves -especially when things are said that are patently untrue and for which there is no redress available. The irony is that many of those who post these comments would never put their name on a ballot paper or get involved in their local community - social media is a perfect training ground for hurlers on the ditch!
Social media companies have a major responsibility in this field. This publication and all such publications are subject to considerable regulation in what we can or cannot publish. Ireland’s laws in this field are some of the toughest in the world, which isn’t a good thing and are in need of reform. However as over-regulated as we are, the virtual lack of regulation on social media is also unacceptable and this also needs considerable reform. The coarsening of public debate and the diminishing of reasonable argument is not good for any democracy.
Politicians, too, seem afraid to stand up against the social media companies. Yes, they are major employers and tax payers in Ireland. But if you don’t stand up for yourselves, how can you expect others to do it?
Accountability in public life is essential and has never been more so. Decisions around our lives should always be questioned and challenged. I am not arguing against accountability. I am not arguing against holding people responsible for their actions. The ultimate accountability for our elected public representatives is your vote. If they don’t deliver, if they let you down, you have the power to remove them.
That is the ultimate power. But that power will be diminished if not enough people contest elections! We all have a stake in this issue - not just those public figures.
