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For a primarily phone-based application, this seems pretty weird to me. (It's harder to navigate and participate in compared to say reddit or fb) I use Instagr

by monksy 8y ago

For a primarily phone-based application, this seems pretty weird to me. (It's harder to navigate and participate in compared to say reddit or fb) I use Instagram, however, the only "harassment" I receive is spam and occasional mentions from p_rn bots. I also keep my profile and I'm not trying to push, sell, or make myself a celebrity. What I think that may be happening: There are a lot of people who are trying to leverage their message or themselves to a level of celebrity and they don't realize that this is one of the consequences of it (or that they refuse to accept it).

tracker1 8y ago
I agree, to an extent. When people invite celebrity status, there will always follow trolls. It simply doesn't matter how great you are. And many don't have the stability and coping systems to deal with it. In saying this, I'm definitely not saying I do... I take a lot of things far more personally than intended, and can only try to not let my instincts drive me when I do. It isn't easy to be on the receiving side of things... that said, I don't think outright censorship is the answer. Couldn't this kid report/block other users on the system giving him grief? Also, for those blocked, probably shouldn't indicate that they've been blocked. I've always found it funny that on Twitter, when someone blocks you, you can no longer see their public profile and tweets. It'd be far better to allow you to see it, but only the blocked see their own retweets/replies. I don't think the people making decisions always think through their decisions. The problem with something like this drawing attention and potentially reacting too quickly is the chance to make things worse is far more likely than actually approving anything.
Sharlin 8y ago
> For a primarily phone-based application, this seems pretty weird to me. You seem to be pretty out of the loop when it comes to Instagram's primary user group. Many teens/early 20s these days don't even have a computer, a smartphone is all they use. They're definitely accustomed to phone UIs. > I use Instagram, however, the only "harassment" I receive is spam and occasional mentions from p_rn bots. Don't generalize from a single datapoint, especially when that datapoint is not a representative sample at all. > What I think that may be happening: There are a lot of people who are trying to leverage their message or themselves to a level of celebrity and they don't realize that this is one of the consequences of it (or that they refuse to accept it). This is just straightforward victim blaming without even trying to understand what is actually going on.
- monksy 8y ago
  1. They may be accustomed to the UI but from using the IG App you don't have the full capability to be aggressively persistent on the phone as you would on the desktop. Yes, mean things do get said, but I would hardly believe that it's as easy as they claim. 2. This was my experience. I'm a private individual whom doesn't use it to build an audience, sell anything, or any of the like. 3. Celebritihood has it's upsides and downsides. Am, I saying it's a good thing that it happens no.
  - Sharlin 8y ago
    The whole point was that you don't have to be a celebrity to get harassed and bullied. You don't need to be anyone in particular. Social media can be used to magnify your old-fashioned highschool bullying to completely different levels. And even if it didn't, if cyberbullying was "just" at the level of IRL bullying, it would still be a problem, of course.
jonknee 8y ago
Instagram's harassment problem is like many others and is a problem for young people and women (and especially young women!). I'm a guy in my 30s and post pictures exclusively of landscapes, harassment is obviously not a problem for me. I'm sure my experience would be different if I was currently in high school or if I was a woman who posted pictures of myself. tl;dr the HN demographic is not the one that gets harassed on almost any platform, but especially IG.

by monksy 8y ago

tracker1 8y ago

I agree, to an extent. When people invite celebrity status, there will always follow trolls. It simply doesn't matter how great you are. And many don't have the stability and coping systems to deal with it. In saying this, I'm definitely not saying I do... I take a lot of things far more personally than intended, and can only try to not let my instincts drive me when I do. It isn't easy to be on the receiving side of things... that said, I don't think outright censorship is the answer. Couldn't this kid report/block other users on the system giving him grief? Also, for those blocked, probably shouldn't indicate that they've been blocked. I've always found it funny that on Twitter, when someone blocks you, you can no longer see their public profile and tweets. It'd be far better to allow you to see it, but only the blocked see their own retweets/replies. I don't think the people making decisions always think through their decisions. The problem with something like this drawing attention and potentially reacting too quickly is the chance to make things worse is far more likely than actually approving anything.

Sharlin 8y ago

> For a primarily phone-based application, this seems pretty weird to me. You seem to be pretty out of the loop when it comes to Instagram's primary user group. Many teens/early 20s these days don't even have a computer, a smartphone is all they use. They're definitely accustomed to phone UIs. > I use Instagram, however, the only "harassment" I receive is spam and occasional mentions from p_rn bots. Don't generalize from a single datapoint, especially when that datapoint is not a representative sample at all. > What I think that may be happening: There are a lot of people who are trying to leverage their message or themselves to a level of celebrity and they don't realize that this is one of the consequences of it (or that they refuse to accept it). This is just straightforward victim blaming without even trying to understand what is actually going on.

monksy 8y ago
1. They may be accustomed to the UI but from using the IG App you don't have the full capability to be aggressively persistent on the phone as you would on the desktop. Yes, mean things do get said, but I would hardly believe that it's as easy as they claim. 2. This was my experience. I'm a private individual whom doesn't use it to build an audience, sell anything, or any of the like. 3. Celebritihood has it's upsides and downsides. Am, I saying it's a good thing that it happens no.
- Sharlin 8y ago
  The whole point was that you don't have to be a celebrity to get harassed and bullied. You don't need to be anyone in particular. Social media can be used to magnify your old-fashioned highschool bullying to completely different levels. And even if it didn't, if cyberbullying was "just" at the level of IRL bullying, it would still be a problem, of course.

jonknee 8y ago

Instagram's harassment problem is like many others and is a problem for young people and women (and especially young women!). I'm a guy in my 30s and post pictures exclusively of landscapes, harassment is obviously not a problem for me. I'm sure my experience would be different if I was currently in high school or if I was a woman who posted pictures of myself. tl;dr the HN demographic is not the one that gets harassed on almost any platform, but especially IG.