Internet Fame Can Last Forever
In her essay “The Flip Side of Internet Fame,” Jessica Bennett tells about problems that can happen when people post online about other people. She describes these problems by using examples of suffering caused because of comments and videos that were posted on the Internet. She also writes about sites that permit people to post about others anonymously. Bennett uses quotes from authorities on online problems and includes a brief history of public shaming. The point of the essay is that people should be careful about posting personal information about themselves or others on the Internet because this type of fame can be very hurtful, is difficult to control, and can last for a long time.
This essay begins with an incident that began in 2002 to a chubby, young man in Canada named Ghyslain Raza, who filmed himself acting out a fight scene from a “Star Wars” movie using a light saber. His performance was awkward, and many people thought it was funny because it was not supposed to be funny. About a year later, another student at his high school found the video and posted it online. It went viral almost instantly, much to Raza’s embarrassment. In a short time, there were hundreds of postings of this video, some enhanced with music and other effects. It was viewed by millions of …show more content…
In Colonial America, people who did not follow religious rules religiously were locked into stocks in the town square where others could humiliate them. Other public punishments in America at this time included cutting off the hands or fingers of thieves or forcing people who committed adultery to wear a large, red “A” on their clothes. This type of public shaming has not stopped, either. Recently in San Francisco, a judge sentenced a mail thief to standing outside of a post office wearing a sign about his
In her essay “The Flip Side of Internet Fame,” Jessica Bennett tells about problems that can happen when people post online about other people. She describes these problems by using examples of suffering caused because of comments and videos that were posted on the Internet. She also writes about sites that permit people to post about others anonymously. Bennett uses quotes from authorities on online problems and includes a brief history of public shaming. The point of the essay is that people should be careful about posting personal information about themselves or others on the Internet because this type of fame can be very hurtful, is difficult to control, and can last for a long time.
This essay begins with an incident that began in 2002 to a chubby, young man in Canada named Ghyslain Raza, who filmed himself acting out a fight scene from a “Star Wars” movie using a light saber. His performance was awkward, and many people thought it was funny because it was not supposed to be funny. About a year later, another student at his high school found the video and posted it online. It went viral almost instantly, much to Raza’s embarrassment. In a short time, there were hundreds of postings of this video, some enhanced with music and other effects. It was viewed by millions of …show more content…
In Colonial America, people who did not follow religious rules religiously were locked into stocks in the town square where others could humiliate them. Other public punishments in America at this time included cutting off the hands or fingers of thieves or forcing people who committed adultery to wear a large, red “A” on their clothes. This type of public shaming has not stopped, either. Recently in San Francisco, a judge sentenced a mail thief to standing outside of a post office wearing a sign about his