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  • Essay / Cancel Culture: The Modern Abuse of Social Power

    “We are no longer looking for the truth or both sides of a story. Whichever side makes the most noise wins… regardless of their relationship to the truth. »Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essayHello, my name is Savannah Tomlinson. Thank you for the opportunity to speak about the global concern and devastating effects of cancel culture at the 2022 Gold Coast Youth Leaders Summit. The Goal of Cancel Culture Ends the influence people, brands or media have due to their offensive or problematic actions and ideologies. Cancel culture is dangerous. The Internet phenomenon is disguised as a way to hold people accountable for their actions, but the new craze is turning into harassment and bullying. Popularizing the phycological phenomenon of mob mentality and cancel culture has devastating consequences. Although some may say that Cancel Culture helps combat racist, sexist, and bigoted behavior on the Internet, Cancel Culture creates and spreads misinformation on a daily basis. The Internet can bring fame to anyone, but also take it away. This modern-day witch hunt is a threat to everyone, brands, communities and individuals. Mob mentality is a very important characteristic of Cancel Culture. Mob mentality is defined as “the phycological process describing how people can be influenced by their peers to engage in certain behaviors on a largely emotional rather than rational basis” (brtanica, 2021). The Internet has become the core of the idea that everyone should have the same ideologies, beliefs and opinions. Today, the mob mentality has evolved to blindly believing others without any form of proof. Although people need to be held accountable for their past actions in order to learn and grow, cancel culture is made for situations where people's actions are so immoral that they have refused the opportunity to change. The growth of social media has blurred the line between celebrity and the average person, as influencers are able to quickly gain a fan base through platforms like Instagram and TikTok. However, it's just as easy to get canceled as it is to become famous. In late 2019, James Charles, a popular YouTuber with over 20 million subscribers, had a scandal when fellow YouTuber and friend Tati Westbrook accused him of sexual misconduct and inappropriate behavior. With the popularity of both YouTubers, the videos' views skyrocketed, gaining 48 million videos in less than a month. In the span of 4 days, James lost over 2.5 million subscribers and received countless hateful comments and death threats. Later, the claims were proven to be false and although James' followers started increasing till date, James is yet to reach 20 million followers. Millions of people believed the accusations without any proof and unsubscribed simply because everyone else was. Mob mentality is a phycological tactic visible in society that dates back to the BC era. So when will we ever learn from our mistakes? In 1692, the people of Salem banded together to accuse the village residents of witchcraft, the accusations being the result of a combination of church politics, family feuds, and hysterical children. Lack of evidence left hundreds accused of witchcraft and left with no choice..