Kevin Hillier says unsocial media has no place in his world
What a week it was to be on a sports radio station in Melbourne last week … it was like nothing I’ve experienced before, which is saying something for someone who has been on radio for four decades.
The thing that has changed in those decades is the public access to information about the news and the ability to express your opinion on it. While I subscribe to the view that everyone is entitled to their opinion and should be able to express it, that was sorely tested in the week just gone. Football is directly linked to passion and, for the most part, that’s a good thing. It’s something we’ve been brought up on. But when it becomes the vile personal vitriol I saw last week, it’s just not right.
My on-air colleagues, Dave Culbert and Rohan Connolly, had opposing views on the Essendon saga, but both were victims, on all social media, of some of the most malicious messages I’ve ever seen. They were hateful and cowardly, given the authors’ anonymity. These keyboard warriors are so consumed with outrage they must be on the verge of exploding. Whatever happened to the term “let’s agree to disagree”? What has happened to healthy debate and why has it been replaced by a shouting match that generally goes off topic and becomes extremely personal?
I remember one of my high school teachers telling me that once you make a debate personal, you’ve lost the argument. A robust debate is something to be cherished, and sometimes it leads you to a different conclusion on the topic you’re talking about. But telling someone to “crawl under a rock and die”, as one person did on SEN’s SMS last week, is pathetic.
The language is also extremely offensive, and constant use of the most despicable expletives is the norm. Creative thought is being replaced by keyboard bullying and I’d love one of these ‘heroes’ to explain to me (in the nicest possible way) what they get out of this behaviour. Social media has so much going for it as a modern form of communication, but unsocial media has no place in my world.
What do you think? ■
If you have any news or events, let me know at kevin@howdypartnersmedia. com.au
