Cyberbullying is a big issue in the world today. Cyberbullying can cause suicide in some cases and the more social media apps that are becoming anonymous is making the problem worse. Karren Garrity, author of the book The Toolbox, says “While the intent may have been to create a place for personal expression, the way it is often being used is extremely harmful.”
Even though anonymous apps don’t have as big of a crowd as regular social media apps, people still use them to harass and bully others. When talking to Aiyana Cross, senior, she said that people are more likely to post on an anonymous app because “they don’t want anyone knowing it’s them because they could lose a lot of respect if they bullied someone using their own accounts such as Twitter or Facebook.” People are more likely to bully someone on an anonymous app because their identity is hidden from the post and the people who see it.
Some anonymous apps that are popular right now are Yik Yak, AfterSchool, Burn Book and Ask.fm. Yik Yak and Afterschool are apps where you can only see posts from people in your area or school. Yik Yak is mainly used for college students and After School is focused on high schoolers. Burn Book is an app (now taken off the App Store) where people post rude comments and start rumors on people they hate This app was created because of the movie Mean Girls. Ask.fm is an app where you can create a profile and ask people questions. All of these apps are anonymous or have anonymous settings. Kaitlyn Robles, freshman, uses After School and she says people post “random thoughts, things about their friends or things that annoy them.”
The purpose of these apps being anonymous was to allow people to express their feelings and opinions. However, people use this to their advantage to post mean comments. Cross also said that the posts on these apps are typically just “people saying hateful things about other people that they would never say if someone knew who they were.”
The more social media apps that become anonymous, their already growing participants will continue to get bigger as time goes on, allowing cyberbullying to grow and become worse.
Amber Filippi
Reporter
Even though anonymous apps don’t have as big of a crowd as regular social media apps, people still use them to harass and bully others. When talking to Aiyana Cross, senior, she said that people are more likely to post on an anonymous app because “they don’t want anyone knowing it’s them because they could lose a lot of respect if they bullied someone using their own accounts such as Twitter or Facebook.” People are more likely to bully someone on an anonymous app because their identity is hidden from the post and the people who see it.
Some anonymous apps that are popular right now are Yik Yak, AfterSchool, Burn Book and Ask.fm. Yik Yak and Afterschool are apps where you can only see posts from people in your area or school. Yik Yak is mainly used for college students and After School is focused on high schoolers. Burn Book is an app (now taken off the App Store) where people post rude comments and start rumors on people they hate This app was created because of the movie Mean Girls. Ask.fm is an app where you can create a profile and ask people questions. All of these apps are anonymous or have anonymous settings. Kaitlyn Robles, freshman, uses After School and she says people post “random thoughts, things about their friends or things that annoy them.”
The purpose of these apps being anonymous was to allow people to express their feelings and opinions. However, people use this to their advantage to post mean comments. Cross also said that the posts on these apps are typically just “people saying hateful things about other people that they would never say if someone knew who they were.”
The more social media apps that become anonymous, their already growing participants will continue to get bigger as time goes on, allowing cyberbullying to grow and become worse.
Amber Filippi
Reporter