Anonymous naming-and-shaming on social mediaBy Donita O'Dell November 27, 2014
According to statements on the page, "This is a new page with the entire desire [sic] to call attention to anyone who can't get it in between the lines, and We take great pride in bringing to light your amazing attempt to make sure everyone is looking at you. " Many of the photos clearly show the license plates and other identifiers that allow the driver or owner of the vehicle to be identified, and if that is not enough, the Awesome Ketchikan Parking Failures page encourages viewers to explicitly identify the drivers or owners of vehicles that they recognize. In some cases, the actual driver is visible in the photos. In many cases, Awesome Ketchikan Parking Failures page owner adds derisive comments, judgments about what they believe is happening in the photo, or the state of mind of the person who parked the vehicle. The page is gaining popularity quickly, with hundreds of frustrated or amused locals joining the witch-hunt in just a few days. It's growing popularity is not very surprising given the popularity of similar social media phenomena, but it does sadden me that so many in our small community support this type of shaming. Especially a number of people that I know personally as compassionate, thoughtful citizens and would expect to respond differently. Awesome Ketchikan Parking Failures seems incapable of demonstrating compassion or understanding for others, and gives no consideration to the circumstances that might lead to someone parking in a manner that offends. Awesome Ketchikan Parking Failures is shaming people in a cowardly fashion anonymously and from the safe distance of social media rather than confronting a perceived problem like a responsible adult. The owner of the page does not identify themselves, and encourages people to submit their own photos anonymously. Come on, Ketchikan Parking Failures page owner. If parking violations are important to you, then man up! Leave polite and respectful, but firm, SIGNED letters on the vehicles of offenders, explaining that their actions have been noticed and are not acceptable in our community. Wait around long enough to speak to drivers in person and explain how their parking affects others negatively but please, also be prepared to listen with compassion as you might discover that situations are not always as black and white as your first impressions would lead you to believe. If you see parking violations that really offend you, or violate the law, then call on store managers and owners of the parking areas to confront the offender, or contact KPD to issue citations. In other words, do something constructive, proactive, humble and honorable. I know that it will take more time, and a lot more courage and commitment, than simply taking a gotcha photo as you drive by and posting it online for all to view and ridicule, but if parking violations are actually important to you then demonstrate that conviction. The same goes to the hundreds of people who have liked the Ketchikan Parking Failures page, and who participate in or support the naming-and-shaming campaign. If bad parking is a problem that you believe affects your community negatively, then speak up politely, firmly, constructively, and with personal accountability. This trend to use social media (like Facebook, Twitter, blogs, etc) like some kind of high tech stock-and-pillory (minus any kind of due process, mind you) to publicly shame our neighbors for perceived or actual bad behavior is really disturbing. It is not necessary to shame one another in order to call out bad behavior, or to hold people accountable. It isn't necessary to resort to shaming someone privately with a defamatory note left on their windshield and it most definitely isn't necessary to resort to shaming people publicly more than just publicly, in fact using media (Facebook, the Internet) that has absolutely no bounds and whose potential for harm cannot be predicted or prevented once unleashed. Shaming primarily serves the purpose of making some of us feel stronger and more important through the action of degrading others. More insidiously, it serves the purpose of creating entertainment (the ONLY reason that it exists on social media like Facebook), specifically You might argue that no harm is done by posting photos of vehicles that were parked badly. The truth is that none of us can know what harm will be done, because there is no way of knowing how those photos will be used, who will see them, or what actions they might inspire. Many of the photos clearly depict information that could be used to personally identify the owner of the vehicle, or the driver. Some of the photos, in fact, show the driver. Although a post pinned to the top of the page says, this is for fun and maybe raise a little awareness [sic] and reminds participants, please, NO BULLYING!, a naming-and-shaming campaign implicitly encourages harassment of its victims, with absolutely no accountability. Again, there is NO PLACE for that in our community! Even if I were to accept that future harm will probably be minimal (although I don't accept that as a valid argument, let us pretend for a moment that I do), the question still begs to be answered: what legitimate purpose is served? Any person who is going to feel shame over their parking mistakes would feel shame (regret, remorse) without being subjected to public shaming and ridicule via social media; that respectful note on their windshield or a face-to-face explanation would be sufficient. Conversely, any person that does not feel shame when confronted personally will not magically develop a sense of shame when the attempt at shaming goes public (or, in this case, global); nothing short of intervention from a store manager or police officer will change their behavior. (Of course, there is also the fact that most people who appear on the page are unlikely to even know it let alone be shamed, OR change their behavior unless they happen to be Facebook users and subscribe to the page.) The ostensible purpose of changing bad behavior is not effectively served. Again, the real purpose (and consequence) of public shaming especially social media naming-and-shaming campaigns is not actually about stopping the bad behavior, but about degrading the perceived offenders for the entertainment of and the self-elevation of the viewers and participants. I considered writing this letter privately to Ketchikan Parking Failures' page owner, but I ultimately chose instead to write it as an open letter for two reasons: 1) The anonymous owner took this issue to a public forum, and I hope very much that the Ketchikan Parking Failures' anonymous page owner will carefully consider whether the naming-and-shaming Facebook page contributes anything positive to our community, and upon consideration, that it will be quietly deleted. Respectfully, Donita O Dell About: Resident of Ketchikan that values compassion and respect as a top priority in a community. Related:
Received November 26, 2014 - Published November 27, 2014 Viewpoints - Opinion Letters:
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