Cyberbullying has been a problem for years. But its prevalence and immediacy has been greatly facilitated by the rise of social media.

Arguments and abuse on Facebook. Pictures indiscreetly posted online. Slanderous inaccuracies tweeted without a care in the world. Video clips of people drunk, having sex — or having drunken sex — being stuck up on YouTube. It is like a jungle sometimes – only much worse...
The most recent high-profile case followed Eminem’s Slane Castle gig. Pictures of a 17 year-old girl performing oral sex went viral. She was quickly dubbed ‘Slanegirl’: the videos were met with an avalanche of abuse – of her. Gardai have since launched an investigation, which aims to find out who was responsible for putting the images online.
“Cyberbullying is an issue for everyone,” says Denise McCarthy, vice president for welfare at the Union of Students in Ireland. Denise is the driving force behind the USI Guide to Cyberbullying, which offers advice to students as to how to approach social media in a way that avoids bullying of any kind.
“It is so anonymous and far reaching,” Denise says of the interweb. “We want to educate young people and make them aware of that.”
“The internet isn’t very forgiving,” adds Naoise Kavanagh, online communications manager with ReachOut.com, the youth mental health organisation. “What goes up stays up. If you do something ill-advised it can be impossible to erase it.”
USI’s ‘Think Before You Type Campaign’ was launched in March.
“The name of the campaign really says it all,” says Naoise Kavanagh. “We’re all a little bit removed, in one way, in the online world. We don’t have to look the person in the eye that we’re talking to or about – and, as a result, people often seem to be more aggressive.”
USI re-posted the link to the ‘Think Before You Type Campaign’ in the wake of the ‘Slanegirl’ controversy.
“No one knew that girl’s age when they were re-tweeting those pictures,” says John Buckley, youth engagement officer at youth group SpunOut.ie. “That was potential child exploitation material.”
As it turned out she was 17 years old, and could legally have sex. But what if she had been 16? Or 15? The abuse she received online was utterly appalling either way.
“Trolling is a huge issue,” says Buckley, “but it was good to see the counter hashtag trending.”
What’s important is that all of this is talked about, rather than being brushed under the carpet. People do and say inexplicably nasty things online. They need to know that such actions are not necessarily without consequences. Whoever posted the images of ‘Slanegirl’ giving a blowjob may find this out – to their cost.
“Our future is becoming more and more online,” says Kavanagh, “In a few years time, every employer will be checking your cyber history.There is no switching off now. So it is important that we learn from these mistakes and make an effort to change the way we do things in the future.”
It may not be much consolation to her personally, but the sick treatment of Slanegirl will hopefully serve as a cautionary tale. “The teenage years are the years where you’re finding yourself and growing up,” says Naoise Kavanagh. And we are entitled to do that without the constant fear that any indiscretion might end up being broadcast for the world to see.
USI is working closely with Students Unions’ around the country on this campaign. While UCD, DCU and UL are not represented by the body, they too are putting policies in place.
“It hadn’t really cropped up until recently, but I intend to add a cyberbullying tab to the welfare page on the website,” says Cian Dowling, Welfare Officer at UCD.
“All colleges should be looking at cyberbullying,” adds Lorna Finnegan, Welfare Officer at DCU. “We need to educate students to be aware of the consequences to their actions online.”
For her part, Denise McCarthy’s message to students is simple: “We are all content creators. Don’t be a bystander – and think before you type.”