We Need to Stop Letting the Internet be our Moral Compass.

Graphics by Kylie Adedeji

It’s 2024 and we're still letting whatever or whoever is trending at the moment sway the opinions that will shape our future…Yawn.

Don’t get me wrong, there’s absolutely no shame in looking to the internet for the latest fashion trend or what overpriced smoothie your favorite influencer is currently obsessed with, but when it comes to hard hitting, meaningful, and deeply impactful issues, it’s about time we start thinking for ourselves. Too often are we seeing people let their favorite influencer dictate their entire belief system or even worse, believing whatever hashtag is at the top of trending on twitter (gross). In a world where media literacy is on a horrifyingly steep decline and AI is confusing everyone's grandma, it is beyond vital that we take the time to assess our own needs and beliefs before we hit record on that TikTok and go on a 10 part rant about things we’re not familiar with yet. 

It is especially vital in moments like this, where we are only less than 2 months away from the 2024 election. Instead of wondering why Taylor Swift was still sharing a booth with Brittany Mahomes at the US Open even after liking Trump's tweets, we should be worried about what these candidates plan on doing for us and our (hopeful) future. This is just one of the countless times that people have based their entire opinions on what everyone else is saying and honestly, it’s exhausting. Let's look back at around May 2024 when the “celebrity blockout” or the “digital guillotine” movement began. 

According to Forbes,  this movement was “seemingly started by TikTok user Blockout2024, the movement calls on people to block celebrities”. This was done to reduce the amount of money these celebrities earn off their posts…as they sit in their million dollar homes and cash their checks from their countless other projects. And to add further insult, it’s not even clear whether the movement will even affect the influencers ad revenue or not.

Well, you blocked Beyonce, angrily tweeted at Taylor Swift and decided you hated a random influencer because your TikTok FYP does too…what now? Maybe it’s time we all log out, go outside, touch grass, and start to get active where it really matters, in our communities.