Question for the masses because I’m curious:

What do you think social media would be like if there was no anonymity?

Is it fair to say some people behave differently online because of anonymity?

Would it be good or bad if everything you posted could be tied back to you by your friends, family, employer, etc?

Some obvious concerns people express:

  • personal safety
  • freedom to express views contrary to community, government, etc without retaliation
  • fear of stigmas related to support, education, etc for stigma topics like mental health, sexuality, etc

What reasons do you have for not wanting to own your online identity other than being able to talk trash without being identified? Some people are public and still talk a lot of trash, looking at you Twitter.

You you got doxed, what do you think the impact would be just related to social media conduct?

Edit: With the introduction of online protections for minors, how does that affect the question?

Not from a political standpoint but from a technology one, how do you see that even working?

  • @DrMcRobotEnglish
    8•1 year ago

    I’ve always thought that it ought to be analogous to the real world. There are places in the real world where you can be anonymous, and the internet needs that.

    But there are also public places on the internet. In the same way that there are laws to stop you walking into your local town square and starting to yell racist shit, there ought to be something that stops you doing that in the “town square” of the internet - i.e. Facebook, Twitter, YouTube etc. Or at least, there should be a consequence to that.

    I think that figuring out some kind of threshold beyond which a site needs to require an official, publicly visible ID could be of benefit, but agree that people will always need the opportunity for online privacy.

    • @FMT99English
      8•1 year ago

      I don’t necessarily disagree but those spaces/sites would have to be public. I don’t want a private company determining whether or not I’m allowed to speak in a public space.

    • @surewhynotlemEnglish
      3•1 year ago

      That’s how it is today. “walk” into a banking website and you need to prove who you are. And there are social media sites that do the same. I think truth social asks for a picture of your ID to verify you.

      • Chaotic EntropyEnglish
        2•1 year ago

        The fact that the likes of Truth Social hoover up your personal information and documents is little surprise to me.