“They have no character. They have no guts. They lack courage. I’m old school. If I’ve got something to say, I’ll say it to your damn face. A lot of times people don’t like that, and they’ll punch you. But that’s their opportunity, and that’s the way you do business in this life: You say it to their face.”
Russell Stookey
A recent episode of This American Life told the story of Gene Cooley, a resident of the small town of Blairsville, GA whose reputation was destroyed by vicious anonymous posts on Topix. The quote above is from Cooley’s lawyer, who successfully sued to unmask Cooley’s online tormentors. The segment is fascinating and well worth a listen, especially given the rise of Secret.
Secret, the recently launched “anonymous twitter” app, has taken the tech industry by storm with its combination of personal confessions, trolling, Silicon Valley inside baseball, and bashing and trashing of companies and people.
Anonymous discourse has its place: It provides a safe space in which vulnerable people can express themselves without fear. It can give a voice to people marginalized by incumbent power structures in other media. But anonymity also creates a place where lies, slander and bullying go unchecked.
In a notable recent example, someone published an anonymous Medium post attempting to discredit Julie Ann Horvath and her claims of harassment at GitHub. Contrast this with Horvath’s courage in discussing her experience. She described specific incidents, named names, and put her own credibility on the line to do so. She took a risk in order to speak out, and I don’t doubt that she’s been threatened and intimidated for it. “Jane Doe” on the other hand, wants to trash Horvath without putting anything on the line, and it’s hard to believe anything he/she says when there are no consequences to lying.
Anonymity can be a corrective against privilege. When the deck is stacked against you, it may give you a safe way to be heard. But, on Secret and elsewhere, it’s too often used in exactly the opposite way. And this is especially grating when so many courageous people, especially women, do in fact speak up publicly, often at great risk.
If you’re going to attack someone publicly, even if you’re convinced you’re telling the truth, use your real name, and stand behind your allegations. Because that’s the way you do business in this life: You say it to their face.
