We’ve all laughed at Jimmy Kimmel’s Mean Tweets before.
But do we ever stop to think about the fact that public figures get bombarded with these hateful messages every day? Social media has given humanity a virtual invisibility cloak. A talking head to stand behind. Or rather, to hide behind.
And women in sports are often targeted. Just Not Sports shed light on the issue in a video campaign titled “More Than Mean.” In the video, female sports reporters Sarah Spain and Julie DiCaro sit across from men who were asked to read aloud some of the harassing tweets that have been sent to the women.
The tweets start out somewhat light-hearted before quickly delving into disgusting, heart-wrenchingly hurtful territory. The men struggle to read the vile tweets to the women’s faces, even stuttering and apologizing, reassuring the women that the messages are not from them.
So why is it that we have such a hard time saying mean things to people’s faces, but have no problem when we’re protected by the safety of a screen while we use a keyboard as our weapon? People have transformed from humans, to usernames. And for all of the anti-bullying campaigns that are promoted, there are still thousands upon thousands of hateful messages spewed daily.
xx, The FabFitFun Team
