Uncomfortable Reflections on Twitter “Reply Guys”
Blather, wince, delete: The directions printed on my back.
Everyone — or at least a sizable chunk of Twitter — likes to feel clever. We like to have our intelligence validated. We like to tell a good joke. And some of us dream of being the life of the party, even when it’s not our party.
When that desire drives you into a marathon of unsolicited wit-and-wisdom-dropping in the timelines of strangers, you may be a “reply guy.”
Here’s what I learned about this phenomenon, and about myself, from a little research and reflection.
The short-short lesson: Don’t be that guy.
What is a “reply guy”?
If you’re on Twitter, you may have seen the term “reply guy” in a less than flattering context to refer to a fellow Twitter user who replies — perhaps too often, or too obnoxiously, too persistently — to someone’s posts.
But what is a reply guy? Here’s the basic dictionary definition:
“A reply guy is a term for a man who frequently comments on tweets or other social media posts in an annoying, condescending, forward, or otherwise unsolicited manner — especially posts by women. It can also refer to a person who frequently and zealously responds…
