MEMES AND INTERNET VIOLENCE

Satirical to sadistic Online trolling communities encourage bigotry, violence

Ben McHenry mchenben000@hsestudents.org

Memes and trolling are now some of the primary forms of online entertainment, seen in the cryptically named account “@FUNNYMEMES” boasting over 8 million Instagram followers. However, despite the increasing mainstream appeal of meme pages, the internet also shelters a far more sinister sense of humor: one based around idolibing violent fi ctional characters, spewing hateful rhetoric and even committing violent acts. Some of this hatred can be traced back to Poe’s Law. Created in 2005, Poe’s Law was born out of a comment from Christian Forums user Nathan Poe. In a debate about creationism, one user typed to another, “Good thing you included the winky. Otherwise people might think you are serious.” Poe responded to this comment, saying “Without a winking smiley or other blatant display of humor, it is utterly impossible to parody a Creationist in such a way that someone won’t mistake for the genuine article.” Poe’s Law means that anything that is not incredibly explicit in its sarcasm will be taken as serious by at least one person, and this has commonly been seen on sites such as Reddit. The subreddit /r/GamersRiseUp is currently in the midst of its own Poe’s Law dilemma. The focus of /r/GamersRiseUp is satirizing and mocking the sexist and racist trope of a gamer, which shares similarities with an involuntary celibate. It is centered around the idea that they are unable to fi nd coUpanionship simply due to their genetic disposition and that anger is typically expressed as hatred towards _oUen, Uen _ho fi nd coUpanionship and other minorities. At this subreddit’s inception, they adopted DC supervillain Joker as their mascot, as he represents some misconstrued idea of taking revenge against societal oppressors. This started out docile, as most of the posts were

clearly satirical. However, as the sub has grown, now with over 230,000 members, the line between genuine jokes and actual hostility has increasingly blurred. The front page of /r/ GamersRiseUp does not explicitly state that it is sarcasm, and the sidebar of the sub containing the rules is very satirical. As a result of the lack of clear satire, comments and posts that actually do indicate hatred towards minority groups have become increasingly popular. While it may still be a joke to much of the sub, the rising number of users who do actually feel a sense of validation is certainly a cause for concern. This trolling has even spilled over into real life. At a screening of “Joker” in Paris on Oct.  , a Uan stood up during the fi lU and shouted “Allahu Akbar,” an Arabic saying associated with Islamic terrorism. This luckily did not cause any physical harm, but events such as the April 2018 Toronto van attack, which was inspired by involuntary celibate culture, have. +onfronting this probleU can be diffi cult, as _eeding through a Uass of Rokes to fi nd those who are not joking is unlikely to yield any change. The solution to this problem also does not lie in pointing fi ngers, as only a sUall nuUber of these trollers that fi nd credence in these destructive beliefs. Rather, it lies in acknowledgement. Online communities centered around satire need to acknowledge that there may be users among them who do genuinely share these beliefs. The response to these users should not be to call them out, as this is more likely to reinforce their beliefs, according to a joint study by Stanford University and University of California Berkeley. However, with a non-confrontational solution focused on communicating, those who are spreading hate can be helped. And satirical jokes can be relegated to being no more than the form of entertainment they were intended to be.

Graphic by Ben McHenry.

Lost conversations

STAFF Editor-in-Chief: Ellie Albin Web/News Editor: John Yun Features Editor: Ben McHenry Arts & Culture Editor: Kristen Rummel Sports Editor: Nate Albin Assistant Web/News Editor: Ben Grantonic Social Media Editor/Unity Director: Rebekah Shultz

Reporters Maria Galosi, Mason Gushwa, Fletcher Haltom, Ben Hamilton, Carter Hanefeld, Andrew Haughey, Ben Rosen, Sydney Territo, Lily Thomas, Emma Tomlinson

Photographers Mya Ball, Leen Mahmoud, Nya Thornton

Principal Jason Urban

Adviser Kristine Brown

Associations IHSPA CSPA NSPA Quill and Scroll Printer: AIM Media

Addiction to cellphones creates unwillingness to interact with others

We need small talk. But we are losing it due to the usual suspect: cell phones. This neglect of human interaction gets worse over the years due to the addition, and abuse, of cell phones. People ignore others and avoid daily conversations, using phones as an out - an excuse - to be rude, and, ironically, disconnected from the world around them.

The fact that someone can call, text, listen to music, play games and more all on one tiny, rectangular box-thing is a pretty astonishing human invention. Society, though, is addicted to these devices. A program exists, Internet and Technology Addicts Anonymous, known as the ITAA, that specialibes in helping people _ane off of their use of phones. The step program helps individuals commit to ending their addiction and developing character traits that make them more conscious of the future choices they make concerning technology use.

Not much has changed with the addition of these programs. Because, as far as we can see in the halls of FHS, the problem remains.

8eople here probably do not see a glaring issue and do not _ish to fi` the problem - though it remains detrimental to our daily conversations.

The New York Times recently published an article that addresses our inability to make small talk, which was part of the inspiration for our article on pages 8 and 9. Whether at work or school, society struggles to make small talk. This could possibly be linked to cell phone usage, as written about by MIT sociologist Sherry Turkle in her book titled “Reclaiming Conversation,” which calls for society to analyze how we use our cell phones in order for us to discover a feeling we once knew, but have lost: empathy.

Turkle references a study during an interview with Greater Good Magazine that states 89% of Americans report pulling out their cell phones during the last conversation they had. )ccording to the saUe study,  of Americans admit that pulling out their cell phone deteriorates the quality of their conversation.

The fact that Americans can admit that it deteriorates conversations, but not do anything to stop it, baټes us. The 1T)) prograU e`ists, but seeUs to remain largely unnoticed..

Turkle Uentions another study that discusses the effects of bringing a cell phone into a conversation. Phones cause us to discuss matters we would not mind having interrupted, and, because of that, it decreases the potential for empathetic connection with others.

So, next time you embark on a conversation - especially with someone you do not know, actually - put that phone away. It ruins empathetic connection, which society desperately needs back.

EDITORIAL QUESTION Should the school assist in helping students end phone addiction?

Seniors Emma Julien and Spencer Anderson, who are pictured on the front cover, look up from their cellphones and interact with the people around them. Photo by Ellie Albin.

EDITORIAL POLICY As the student-run newsmagazine of FHS, Tiger Topics N the Red is dedicated to providing the staff, students and community of FHS with a timely, entertaining and factual publication once a month by means of public forum. In publishing articles that students enjoy reading, we are furthering both the educational experience and the expansion of FHS culture. The staff works to create a sense of unity and awareness and to allow the students of FHS to have a better insight to the world around them. Tiger Topics N the RED is the offi cial monthly newsmagazine of Fishers High School. It is distributed free to 3,600 students and over 300 school personnel. It is designed, written and edited by students.

Opinions expressed in the newsmagazine do not necessarily represent those of the adviser, administration or staff.

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