With the use of social media among school kids, cyberbullying is becoming an increasingly widespread phenomenon, with over half of European parents being worried about this phenomenon which can have deadly consequences.
Together with cyberbullying is also emerging the phenomenon of hate speech. Hate speech differentiates itself from cyberbullying because it refers to an attribute of a group of people usually, rather than to an attribute of a specific person. For example, insulting a woman online because she looks beautiful, and so we feel inadequate, therefore we feel the need to tell her to “cover up” or even worse things, is cyberbullying. However, insulting a woman just because she is a woman, regardless of any other characteristic she might be exhibiting, is hate speech. This, of course, often happens also with other social groups such as queer people, blacks, and people with health issues.
What is interesting, however, is that misogyny and homophobia seem to be the main underlying problem in both cyberbullying and hate speech since, looking at the most used insults in both cases, they are aimed at targeting either women or queer men. Of course, also race plays a big role in both these scenarios and, not surprisingly, in particular in the case of hate speech as it targets groups rather than people’s unique features as Brandwatch reports. Lastly, looking at the most divisive topics after politics, the most divisive argument is food: online, indeed, people are often attacked for their body types and shamed for it. Young girls especially are expected to uphold ever-changing body standards (from the super skinny type of the 2000s to the curvy style that is trending now) which, thanks also to the use of filters, are becoming more and more unattainable.
Women in society are criticized in general but on social media, this phenomenon is amplified, with women’s bodies being overexposed and constantly receiving negative feedback. Even women who are entrepreneurs or politicians often receive more attention for how they look, how much they weigh, how frequently they go out, or who they go out with, rather than how well they do their jobs.
Nevertheless, when it comes to cyberbullying there is an adjunctive factor to gender, race, or health: age. In a society where young people are the most exposed to social media, as they are the first generation living with this phenomenon, policymakers are struggling to keep up with the speed of such change. Moreover, for leaders who are in many cases not “digital natives” managing the challenges related to the digital revolution is not easy. The core issue is to establish a dialogue between young people and institutions so that the instances of the first are heard loud and clear by our leaders. It is pivotal to start this type of dialogue and education already in schools, where the phenomenon of bullying and cyberbullying is becoming more and more worrying.
For this reason, today I decided to add to the blog post also an interview of two very special people: Brian Signorini, a young Italian influencer working on sensitizing young people on cyberbullying, and Ivano Zoppi, Secretary General of “Fondazione Carolina” a non-profit organization working to raise awareness on such issues.
Lastly, I would ask everyone to check out the resources linked to the blog post and the interview, especially to read Carolina’s story and how she became an icon, inspiring together with other victims the approval of law 71/2017 against cyberbullying.
Love,
Elena
Interview with Brian Signorini and Ivano Zoppi (Fondazione Carolina)
Let’s start with Ivano: You are the representative of a foundation that has the name of a girl, Carolina Picchio, who was herself a victim of cyberbullying. Which is the best way, in your opinion, to prevent such tragedies from happening, and what is the role of schools and families in this process?
Ivano: The best way to prevent such tragedies from happening is to get children, but also their parents, teachers, and educators, to understand that all the photos, videos, comments, and likes we post remain in the memory of the Internet because the Net does not forget. Children like adults post carelessly, without realizing the consequences that can arise.
Hence, the need to return to educating the value of words, empathy, and respect for the feelings of others, understanding the difference between a joke and what can hurt a partner.
Children and adolescents increasingly left alone in their bedroom with their devices, have lost familiarity with authentic relationships, games, and the sport. It is, therefore, necessary for parents to become aware of this malaise by returning to education by establishing rules and schedules for the use of smartphones and consoles. At the same time, the institutions must organize specific training programs to respond to the new needs of children and adolescents, aimed at both children and their teachers and their parents. To make the impact of a training intervention to be effective, it is necessary to activate educational actions in the daily life of the entire school cycle, not only during the “Safer Internet Day “week or following emergencies.
Without a true alliance with families, the educational action promoted in the school context risks having no effect. Today, it is more essential than ever that the different subjects accompanying children and young people in their growth support each other.
Thanks to the work of your foundation and in the memory of victims like Carolina in 2017 the first European law on cyberbullying was approved. Do you think that such a norm is enough, or does much more need yet to be done to punish effectively cyberbullying at a European level?
Ivano: 71 of 2017, inspired by Carolina's story, was the first to attempt to define the phenomenon of cyberbullying and is still too little known by children and adults.
Current data tell us that today only 20% of Italian students would be able to recognize the school referent for cyberbullying within their school, as required by law 71 of 2017. I believe that there is still a lot to do to punish an act of cyberbullying, especially if we consider that the bureaucracy linked to the timing of legal procedures (reports to the police, punishments for guilty minors) takes too long compared with the immediacy with which the offences travel on the Net.
To Brian now: as a young influencer working on raising awareness of cyberbullying, have you ever been the target of cyberbullying yourself? How does this personal experience help you in your work of helping others?
Brian: I consider myself lucky to be one of those people who has never been bullied or cyberbullied. But unlike what one might think, this led me to give importance to these issues, indeed, the idea that I am and have been lucky in these aspects triggers in me a desire to share and disseminate concrete awareness. Just the thought that a video can help a single person makes me happy. Giving a voice to those who unfortunately cannot expose themselves due to their family, school, or sports environments gives me the power to continue in this fight.
Do you think that social media can be not only the root of the problem, but partly also the solution? Indeed, you use social media to make people more aware of cyberbullying, have you seen an increased sensibility towards this issue thanks to the work of young people like you?
Brian: Even though social media is believed to be responsible for the increase in cyberbullying cases, I believe it can also be the solution. These allow us to reach many people, and if the messages we want to share are read, listened to, or watched by those who needed them in that instant, it inhibits the action of hateful messages. I believe that the activity brought on social networks by peer educators is fundamental for the fight against cyberbullying.
Brian Signorini is an Italian influencer using social media to talk about pressing issues like cyberbullying and mental health.
Lastly, to both of you: If you could say anything to someone behind the screen who is about to type a negative comment on this post, what would it be?
Brian: All messages leave a mark. Are you sure you want to be associated with that? It could be a lethal weapon, with infinite probability, because you don't know the person behind the screen. Perhaps thinking about who reads the comment is the best thing to do instead of clicking submit.
Ivano: Are you sure? Remember that the Internet is forever!
Read Carolina's story here:
https://www.fondazionecarolina.org/2021/carolina/carolina-picchio-da-vittima-a-icona/
Fondazione Carolina was inspired by the story of Carolina Picchio, who was a victim of cyberbullying and aims at raising awareness on such issues.
Other resources:
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