You wouldn't know it to look at my Twitter feed though. Or Facebook. Or Instagram. Nah, I've been posting the usual nonsense -- circus videos, book promos, pet pictures, snarky comments about the PATH train, blah blah blah. Luckily, I'm no celebrity, and I haven't built a following off my sparkling social media personality, so no one much cares about what I do or do not post. Because if they did, I'd probably be accused of being insensitive, ignorant, and a host of other things for not commenting about world politics during a time of crisis.
Social media has set up the bizarre expectation that everyone should have something to say about everything. Beauty influencers are expected to share their thoughts on international politics. Authors of children's books are expected to have well-informed opinions about systematic injustices. Somehow, everyone is supposed to have the same depth of knowledge and ability to comment on any given issue as a professional journalist who's covered the topic for decades or an academic with several degrees in the matter. And if your hastily written, shallowly informed tweet you dashed off to prove you're paying attention doesn't get it quite right, well, may the odds be ever in your favor.
I understand why there is this expectation, both from the creator and audience perspectives. With social media breaking down the barriers between public and personal lives, individuals want to know that the people to whom they give their time (and money) are worthy. Creators want to meet audience expectations and prove that they are, in fact, worthy.
But I think it's a mistake to assume that everyone has to comment on everything. Sometimes, just because someone is silent on a matter doesn't mean they don't care. Social media is a public space, yet it's expected that we act like we would in a more private setting. It's like expecting someone to get up on a stage in a public square but act the same way they would at a hang-out with their two closest friends. Personally, I simply don't consider myself enough of an expert on... anything, really... to shout my opinions publicly.
There was a time when I tried to jump on the whole "have an opinion about everything" bandwagon. Partly it was because I got swept up in the energy of Twitter (there's something of a rush you get from firing off a string of hot-headed tweets), and partly it was because I saw how people were rewarded for this behavior (with followers, clout, and, perhaps most relevantly for me, book deals). But then I got tired. It was exhausting not only trying to keep up with everything, but trying coming up with things to say that felt right. Perhaps it's the nerd in me, but I feel the constant need to fact-check myself. And I'm not comfortable talking about things I have no expertise in.
For me to tweet about the war on Ukraine, I feel like I'd need a background in the history, culture, and politics of the region to be able to say something that felt accurate and meaningful - and not like empty awareness signaling - and I simply don't have that.
Awareness signaling. That's another thing I don't feel like doing. I don't know if it's a real term, but it's what I've come to think of whenever something significant happens in the world and everyone parrots the same generic lines, seemingly just to prove to the rest of the internet that they know what's happening and they're on the "right" side of it.
Anyway, I'll sign off with a plea: Just because you follow someone's social media, don't assume you know everything they're thinking.
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