When I worked in the public eye of television news, I was disturbed by what nasty things people would e-mail anchors and reporters. I once had a woman tell me she could tell I was a *itch because of the way I tilted my head. Really lady?? In reality, when it was loud at my live shots, I apparently leaned my head towards my ear piece hoping I could hear better. People will e-mail and say all kinds of gross things online, because they are hidden behind their computer screens. Most people would never say these things to a person's face.
But I was lucky because my public eye was just a small one in Indianapolis. I really feel bad for movie and reality stars, because they have to deal with this nastiness on a daily basis. For example, I'm constantly shocked by what people post of the Facebook walls of the famous. It doesn't make sense because these people have a) gone to the trouble of looking this person up b) have chosen to "Like" them but then they c) decide to write something nasty underneath their posts. WHY? Why not just save the trouble, and not "Like" someone you really don't like?
I'm going to give a few examples of things I've read on FB walls this week and put them in real-life situations....
A) Your friend comes over to show you recent pictures of her wedding. She's just beaming as she says, look at my dress, my shoes! Your comment to her..."I bet your shoes will last longer than your marriage." Ouch. Or you say, "You're so sick! So many people are dying because they have no food, but you're buying these shoes. You're disgusting!" We'd never say these things, right? But that's exactly what "Sandra" and "Mahaly" wrote on Kim Kardashian's wall this week.
B) Your mom, who's been trying to launch her singing career, finally gets an appearance on a local morning news program. She's getting interviewed about her career and family. She's so excited..until your response is, "I pray to God that you're not singing!" Not happening, right? Well that's exactly what someone posted on LuAnn de Lesseps's wall of the Real Housewives of New York City.
C) You can't wait to show your friends all the pictures from your recent New York City trip. As you're going through each one, your girlfriend says, "Wow, look at your camel toe! Gross!" Please. Do any of you have friends that would honestly say that? That's exactly what someone wrote on Jill Zarin's wall (also from Real Housewives of New York City.)
My point is this: Before any of us type anything, we should think about how we'd feel if someone said this to our faces, or worse yet, to our children, nieces and nephews. Let's teach them kindness and not hatred.
Now, do you want me to tell you about the time a viewer called me a slut?
But I was lucky because my public eye was just a small one in Indianapolis. I really feel bad for movie and reality stars, because they have to deal with this nastiness on a daily basis. For example, I'm constantly shocked by what people post of the Facebook walls of the famous. It doesn't make sense because these people have a) gone to the trouble of looking this person up b) have chosen to "Like" them but then they c) decide to write something nasty underneath their posts. WHY? Why not just save the trouble, and not "Like" someone you really don't like?
I'm going to give a few examples of things I've read on FB walls this week and put them in real-life situations....
A) Your friend comes over to show you recent pictures of her wedding. She's just beaming as she says, look at my dress, my shoes! Your comment to her..."I bet your shoes will last longer than your marriage." Ouch. Or you say, "You're so sick! So many people are dying because they have no food, but you're buying these shoes. You're disgusting!" We'd never say these things, right? But that's exactly what "Sandra" and "Mahaly" wrote on Kim Kardashian's wall this week.
B) Your mom, who's been trying to launch her singing career, finally gets an appearance on a local morning news program. She's getting interviewed about her career and family. She's so excited..until your response is, "I pray to God that you're not singing!" Not happening, right? Well that's exactly what someone posted on LuAnn de Lesseps's wall of the Real Housewives of New York City.
C) You can't wait to show your friends all the pictures from your recent New York City trip. As you're going through each one, your girlfriend says, "Wow, look at your camel toe! Gross!" Please. Do any of you have friends that would honestly say that? That's exactly what someone wrote on Jill Zarin's wall (also from Real Housewives of New York City.)
My point is this: Before any of us type anything, we should think about how we'd feel if someone said this to our faces, or worse yet, to our children, nieces and nephews. Let's teach them kindness and not hatred.
Now, do you want me to tell you about the time a viewer called me a slut?
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