New social media site encourages cyber bullying

photo+by+Katie+Weber

photo by Katie Weber

“Find out what people want to know about you!”

Ask.fm bears this supposedly enticing tagline. This shoddy social media site appears innocent enough; it gives anyone, regardless of whether or not this person is registered with the site, the ability to ask users questions.

Unfortunately, Ask.fm gives questioners the option to ask anonymously. This feature practically begs to be abused. Sometimes this abuse is merely annoying. At its worst, however, the questions are vicious.

As social media has aged, anti-cyberbullying campaigns have become prevalent, yet when students feel they can hide behind the “anonymous” label, all common sense seems to disappear. Ask.fm members are subject to attacks on their appearance, character and behavior.

Although most Ask.fm users sign up for an account knowing that questioners can choose to hide their identity, they cannot be blamed for the harrassment they receive. Nasty questioners are solely responsible for this site’s abuses. However, it is not realistic to believe that those who are too immature to properly use social media will simply grow up. Unfortunately, the best solution to end unwarranted attacks is closing an Ask.fm account completley.

Annoying posts are much more common than vicious abuse. Ask.fm members who post their every question to Twitter are often ridiculed or unfollowed. Students are rightfully aggravated when they open their timeline to find a swarm of “questions” praising their peer’s beauty.

Luckily, this issue is much more easily solved than abusive questions, as both the poster and the annoyed reader can take action. Posters can simply stop posting their responses to other social media sites or make these posts less frequently; readers can unfollow posters.

Due to a lack of internet etiquette, Ask.fm’s advantages are few and drawbacks are many. While it is up to each user whether or not they can handle the potential backlash from opening an account, all users should consider the darker side of this social media site.

By Katie Weber