Social Media Bullying Warning Signs to Violence & Suicide

Image

Social Media Bullying threats lead to violence and suicides AlamogordoTownNews.com

One impulsive post that takes 10 seconds to make can destroy a person’s future, regardless of the individual’s age. A post can destroy an individuals self worth, a business or lead to suicidal thoughts and behaviors.

Research has shown that young adults who use social media are three times as likely to suffer from depression, putting a large portion of the population at risk for suicidal thoughts and behaviors

Jessica Holzbauer, a licensed clinical social worker at Huntsman Mental Health Institute, explains how our smartphones are, by design, addictive. “We get a dopamine release in our brain when we pick up our phone or log into social media,” she says. Using social apps is essentially priming your brain into thinking you are rewarding yourself every time you pick up your device.

A recent study from Facebook found Instagram to have harmful effects among a portion of its millions of young users, particularly teenage girls. Findings indicated that Instagram makes body image issues worse for one in three teenage girls. And among teenagers who reported suicidal thoughts, 6 percent in the U.S. traced them back to Instagram

Facebook uses algorithms that are known to promote violent and inciting content, and despite claims to the contrary, Facebook rarely filters it out. This is because Facebook relies on violent content to bolster its audience and increase profits. The algorithm allows blatantly racist content, including advocating white supremacy, to be displayed.

This type of algorithm is not unique to Facebook. The company that owns Facebook, Meta, also owns Instagram, which uses a similar algorithm.

Facebook is so ineffective at policing violent content on its platform that the graphic video of the racially motivated Buffalo, New York, mass shooting, which was livestreamed by the shooter, has made its way onto the platform and continued to spread despite users reporting it. When users reported it, they received a message stating the video did not violate Facebook’s terms of service.

This type of content fosters an aggressive environment and could give young people the impression that violent statements and threats are permissible on social media. Unfortunately, this is an issue across social media platforms, not just Facebook.

Although people who make these threats try to pass them off as pranks or “free speech and just a personal opinion on a personal page, they are not harmless, and the authorities are now taking them seriously.

We’ve witnessed in our own Alamogordo Public School System teachers and administrators who were aware enough to sleuth social media posts or Google chats, see threats, report them to the local police and recent arrests made.


According to the FBI
, threatening a school on social media is a federal crime, which could carry a penalty of up to five years in prison, and state charges may apply.

Threats against a public school are not only felonies but, in some jurisdictions, they are considered a form of domestic terrorism.

Threats and insinuations against individuals and groups of individuals, targeted activist groups and minority groups are of an equal gravity. Sadly law enforcement is overwhelmed to investigate every threat to individuals or activist group and sometimes it’s too late.

One impulsive post that takes 10 seconds to make can destroy a person’s future, regardless of the individual’s age. Is that the poster’s intent?

In light of this, it is vitally important for the public to self police potential threats and work to engage civility in social media.

It’s important to remember and teach others that the consequences of saying anything on social media that could be construed as a threat or an engagement to tear down one another.

Social media is a powerful tool for discussion, dialogue and debate but social media can also serve as a warning medium of an individual’s intent or issues of personal insecurity and warn of escalations to violence.

Stay diligent, look for powder kegs and deescalate. Advise authorities when one perceives a threat.

If you are a victim of a social media threat contact the authorities if you feel threatened.

We all know how the algorithm works—the more you look at your phone, the more it will send compelling content to keep your eyes from looking away. It’s hard to break habits of checking TikTok or Instagram and constantly refreshing to see more, but it’s important to take time away for our mental and physical health. Parents can set a good example through their own virtual behavior.

Don’t led social media posts and attacks drive you to darkness.

988, the national suicide and crisis lifeline, is available anytime, anywhere. Simply call, chat, or text 9-8-8 for an immediate response from a licensed mental health professional. In Utah, students also have access to the SafeUT app where they can chat confidentially or submit a tip about themselves or a friend.

More News from Alamogordo
I'm interested
I disagree with this
This is unverified
Spam
Offensive