Cancel Culture

Have you ever been nervous to post something on social media? Or have questioned any of your comments and replies on Twitter? That is because of the toxic use of cancel culture that has overtaken our social media platforms, and has influenced the ways that the groundswell interacts with one another. 

Cancel culture refers to one withdrawing support for public figures and/or companies after they have posted or said something that may be considered offensive or not politically correct. This feels like a new trend that has spiked during the pandemic - maybe due to the fact that every single part of our everyday life is being questioned and protested. We are in a revolution, and if you say something that may be wrong you will be cancelled. 

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 Now, lets look at both sides. On one end, we have the groundswell doing what it does best and controlling the brands and what is "hot or not." On the other end, we have the groundswell making it nearly impossible for any brand or famous figure to say something that they believe in - so does that mean they are just saying it because they know it is what the groundswell would want? It creates a weird dichotomy between wanting brands to be truthful and personable but also not wanting them to say something that can potentially be wrong or offensive. 

Now, I'm not picking sides - I completely agree with the methodology behind cancel culture. But I think it is interesting to look how to the cancel culture on social media impacts brands and public figures. Cancel culture has the ability to give voices to marginalized communities within the groundswell, but it also has the ability to create a large amount of outrage while "oversimplifying complex issues for the sake of going viral."

The pandemic has increased the severity of cancel culture; with the election, the black lives matter movement, and so many other debates happening around the country all eyes are turning towards public figures and large corporations. The power of social media plays a huge role in this. Brands typically have stayed out of politics, but if they do that today then they will be cancelled. It is no longer politics when human lives are involved, and that is why attention is turning towards brands. 

64% of consumers will buy or boycott a brand solely because of its position on a social or political issue. With that being said, brands can never be right in todays society. For example, H&M released a line of sustainable dresses hoping to cater towards those who are environmentally conscious, but immediately they received backlash online. 

They were being accused of greenwashing, and using this new line as a way to validate fast fashion - which can never be validated. But to play the devils advocate, H&M is trying to cater to remarks made by the groundswell and yet the groundswell is now attacking them and they are risking being cancelled. 

It comes down to the power that the groundswell has. They have made it so that brands are making decisions that are against the brands mission, or that they are forced to release statements about things they never would have considered important for their company. It is crazy, the power the groundswell has on social media. Something that the cancel culture has also shown to be true when it comes to the groundswell is how they hold one another accountable.

For example, the cancel culture is creating a social media wave of accusing almost every single TikTok or Instagram post of being politically incorrect or offensive in some way. Social media creates a way for the groundswell to come together and hold institutions and people accountable as well as to challenge dominate ideologies. As I assume you guessed, this doesn't leave much room for brands and public figures to provide their actual opinions. Cancel culture is a cruel trend, and doesn't leave room for people to learn and understand and grow from their mistakes.