Is anonymity a curse or a blessing? We’ve done so much research in class about the curses of online anonymity and how it leads to trolling. I thought that anonymity bread bad behavior, but there are benefits to being anonymous. Anonymity gives people a platform to ask what they really want to know without feeling embarrassed. It also allows us to share things; our feelings, our writings, our ideas, without feeling judged. Anonymity saves people from being judged and it saves us from judging others. In class when we do our read-arounds, only our student number is printed on our papers. If we read something and don’t know who the author is, we’re more likely to read it with an open mind. If we know who’s paper reading, we already have an opinion established, making us biased.The other week I was so convinced there were more cons then pros when it came to anonymity but, I’m starting to see the light of the other side.
You bring up some great points Marissa! I like how you mention how anonymity can help protect people from the embarrassment associated with asking socially taboo questions. I also like how you mentioned our anonymous read arounds that we do in class. They are a great example of positive anonymity. Your post reminds me of something Gabriella Coleman talks about in her article, "Anonymity Online Serves Us All". She says that anonymity "at its best... puts the attention on the message, rather than the messenger." Your example of our blind read around serves to further support Coleman's claim about anonymity.
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ReplyDeleteI totally agree! The whole time we have been reading articles in class I have been perceiving anonymity as a negative thing but the more I think about it, it does have it's perks. I think anonymity can be a positive thing as long as it is used in a correct way. Trolling, for example, would be a negative way to use anonymity. Going off of what you mentioned, many people are curious about different things but may be too embarrassed to ask and this is where anonymity could come in handy! Being anonymous is definitely sometimes a pro when it comes to judgment. Having an open mind is vital and anonymity provides for that.
Marissa, I agree with you because anonymity does serve as protection from being judged. I think people definitely feel more comfortable publicizing their ideas and beliefs when they are anonymous because if people judge them, they won't know who they are. Also I like all the points you made and I agree with all of them. I prefer doing the read arounds with my student ID number instead of my name because peoples feedback will be sincere and they can say what they like with out knowing who the author is.
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