Google Before You Believe

Posted on by Emma Henzes

You saw all your friends post it, maybe not all your friends. But the innocent ones who don’t understand Instagram would never send an unbranded piece of content like that. The latest “viral hoax,” an Instagram privacy change, making those panic under the notion that Instagram has the rights to the photos you publically uploaded to their app.

We have all fell into the trap at one point in our life, in a gullible, naive manner. Usually, those in their middle school days learn from reposting silly content that has no factual basis. Elena Lacey described in her WIRED article “Why People Keep Falling for Viral Hoaxes” that usually a quick Google search can clear the air, a simple task to do before reposting questionable viral content. Lacey sought out our very own Whitney Phillips, Communication and Rhetorical Studies Professor, for how viral hoaxes spread so quickly.

“‘If the story pushed by a meme or hoax fits in a way that feels like a coherent narrative to a critical mass of people, it’s game over,’ says Phillips.”

In the case of the Instagram hoax, all users were “affected.” No one was left out, allowing it to spread so quickly, especially with celebrities sharing. Maybe the person who created it just wanted to watch the world burn, or they were conducting some research on how ill-advised social media users can be. I can see how someone would get enjoyment out of their hoax going viral, maybe a sociopath, perhaps.

As Lacey discussed on WIRED.COM, this Instagram hoax was a minor glitch in people’s lives. It was not damaging to one’s being and besides looking foolish afterward for posting the screenshot, there was no dangerous call to action.

However, in the era of “Fake News,” sharing accusatory posts or posts that demand a call to action without proper understanding can be detrimental to our social media culture, spreading false information. And as the Tampa FBI Department tweeted, violent threats can derive serious consequences.

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