I remember when the Facebook “marked as safe” feature came out it just felt like almost everyone was eager to have their chance to be close enough to something bad to use it.
Nearby hurricanes, bombings, fires. All were an opportunity to add something new to your feed.
There is something weird about how when something bad happens you can almost feel people soaking in the pride and attention that comes from it.
Half the town burns down in a forest fire turns from a sad solemn event into a social media campaign and a reason for you to be the center of attention.
A famous figure dies? How can you prove that you’re more deeply impacted than the people around you?
Instead of an internal look at the emotions, people first focus on how the event impacts their claim to the attention and empathy of the people around them. You can see it in their eyes and hear it in their voices, they aren’t sad, they are drunk on being a miniature crisis celebrity.
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