Cyber-bullying: analyse af artikler af Lakhani, Krotoski og Hoffman

Text one is an article from The Independent website written by Nina Lakhani. Lakhani says that one in five children has been a victim of the cyber-bullying and Lakhani also calls attentions to the fact that it can end up with a suicide. She blames the society. Lakhani believes that the society has some of the responsibility, and encourages them to take a look on the anti-bullying campaigns and work with the young people.

Text two is an article from The Guardian Website written by Aleks Krotoski. Cyber-bullying is a serious problem but Krotoski believes that it is because the internet is to open for everybody, so it encourages youngsters to communicate through the internet instead of real-life and offers the freedom to preach about your positions irrespective of whether it hurts somebody’s feelings.

Question two:

The writer Krotoski he is just a guy who studies the web. Krotoski starts by telling the reader that he has been on the internet since 1996 and that it is amazing what you can do with an account on the internet. “I was using my mum’s AOL account to mooch around the world wide web (…) unrestricted access to the outside world in a way that no generation had known before”. He points out that the internet is full of opportunities and he describes it like it’s something new and interesting and therefore you have to explore it. But after a while he discovers the thrill by having an anonymous account in a chatroom because it makes you capable of anything. You can say what you want because no one knows who you are. “It was with cocky confidence that I joined the “general” room (…) I began a brief but satisfying tirade of mockery, contrariness and antisocial behavior.” Here he involves his own story about how he became a bully on the internet and shows the reader that the internet can have an effect on you and your behavior. His use of pathos makes him interesting because he has felt the need to take advantage of the freedom the internet gives to you. He has been tempted just like another youngster and that is what makes it interesting instead of reading about a doctor or an expert’s positions about the topic. Krotoski also involves a doctor’s opinion to prove his point. Dr. Karen Douglas also says that it is too easy to log on the internet and drop a hate bomb. She believes that the cyber-bullies may think it is insignificant and maybe funny but unfortunately they are not aware of the fact that whatever you say on the internet it might hurt somebody’s feelings. “So what happens when we only communicate with people like ourselves, and the massages we share only reinforce our mutual hatred?” Here Krotoski also adds irony when he point out that pages like Facebook and Twitter can increase the circle of people just like ourselves.