“Who gives a shit about Baldwin…really, who gives a shit?”

“Love him.”

“Fuck him.”

Comment threads on Facebook fascinate me. I can spend hours scrolling through them, and, at times, participating on them. Many of us share this impulse. For me, I am motivated by two main interests. The first is pragmatic, a form of market research, that familiarizes myself with consumers and fellow media brands. I like gauging a company’s effectiveness on individual posts, the traction they receive from their audience, and whether or not they maintain the integrity of their mission.

The second interest is much more philosophical. I enjoy interrogating human tendency. I particularly enjoy sifting through the endless streams of metadata, determining how/what springs us toward joyous solidarity on the one hand, and base, shadowy compulsions on the other.

“The shadow, which is in conflict with the acknowledged values, cannot be accepted as a negative part of one’s own psyche and is therefore projected—that is, it is transferred to the outside world and experienced as an outside object. It is combated, punished, and exterminated as ‘the alien out there’ instead of being dealt with as ‘one’s own inner problem.’”1

We all are susceptible, right? Given the right circumstance and provocation, our behavior can slide erratically along this spectrum. Consequently, platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Reddit allow the extremity of our public (/private) lives to be optimized, a/b tested, and manufactured into sensational “trending” stories.

We can all recall recent examples: Richard Sherman, Justine Sacco, Paula Dean, Lena Dunham, Piers Morgan, Lana Del Rey, Kayne West, Anne Hathaway, and now Alec Baldwin.

These figures are culturally disposable, moral scapegoats. And, although each of their circumstances involve severely complex and sensitive issues—typically calling for empathy and open-mindedness—the brutish language we use to denigrate them is both maddening and cruel.

* * *

“Only one can hope”

“Boo fucking hoo. Shut the fuck up and go away, you self aggrandizing asshole.”

“Did any of you bother to read the article?”

“Alec Baldwin is a ginormous twit-bag.”

“Way to leave dude! Totally classless and burning bridges”

“Doesn’t slate see the irony of it’s own headlines?”

“We are losing a brilliant interviewer and bank of theater knowledge.”

“You jest!”

“Don’t let the door hit your ass on your way out, loser.”

* * *

Amid the digital arms race, where words like “shareability” and “clickbaitedness” have become common parlance, my two interests merge into a concern for the subtle proselytizing of our media sources. Granted, we aren’t fooled; how often have we seen the comment, “Go home NPR*.. ur drunk?” or “This isn’t news”? And yet, as consumers, who among us exercise our power of opting-out?

The problem, here, is unanimous. We are all complicit; we all let a stray, regrettable word go from time to time. The opportunity is to consider our response as the mob online community, one that acknowledges our own contradicting behavior. In so doing, fostering genuine care for others, their misgivings, and their propensity toward joyous solidarity.