I grew up in Larnaca, and as a teenager in the nineties, I can remember that the issue of gossip and people staring and judging was always a prevalent one.
Wherever you went, people would stop and stare, looking you up and down. Not because there was anything particularly freaky about the way you looked, it was just something that people did. Although if you did happen to wear a short skirt or have a non-conventional hairstyle then you really were bait for the stares!
The fear of 'antropi' (shame) and what-will-the-neighbours-say was something that clouded your every move and one wrong move and the news would spread like wildfire. Many a young lady was tarnished with an unfair reputation because of what she wore, because a mean-spirited friend was jealous, or for spurning the advances of a boy who would take revenge by spreading nasty falsities. And once the rumour mill started to grind, it didn't stop.
Fast forward to today and most Cypriots are far more liberal minded – even the older generation who have come to accept that their daughters and sons have married different nationalities, gone through divorces, had children out of wedlock, sport tattoos or are gay. It is actually the norm to wear something risqué, enjoy dalliances with multiple partners, sport a gothic look and act with complete abandon and freedom. And it's a good job too because with the advent of social media and advanced technological devices, the rumour mill would be in complete overdrive if we were still the village gossips of yesteryear.
But however liberal or multicultural our society has become, social media and advanced telephony can still cause a lot of damage. I really pity teenagers today who are living out these years of discovery, mistakes and terrible fashion choices in the public eye; who may get caught out on a mobile camera, or have a picture that will haunt them forever splashed all over the internet.
And with this social media freedom comes another issue that is more prevalent due to our size. Being a small island with smaller towns and even smaller communities means that flippant remarks or comments can destroy people and businesses, because everyone knows exactly who or which organisation you are talking about, and nothing can get lost as it would in the geographical vastness of other countries.
The case in point is the story last week of Billy the dog. I don't even need to say anything else and you will no doubt know all about Billy, thanks to social media. But whilst what happened is abhorrent, what is equally abhorrent is the way people have tarnished an entire company for the actions of two employees, with some even calling for people to boycott the group. Those spreading such ridiculous suggestions are too outraged about the attack on an innocent animal to realise that they are attacking innocent people. A whole organisation and the thousands they employ may end up with their livelihoods and reputation destroyed.
We all have a responsibility to think carefully about what we post or say on the big World Wide Web to ensure that are not spreading malicious gossip or defamation. Lives are literally at stake.
First appeared in The Cyprus Weekly, 05/07/14
