'Master Class' presentation, The Chang School, Ryerson University

1. Reputation and Shame
You can be defined by your worst momentBoyd Neil

2. 2
“You are now defined by your
very worst moment. Not only
that, your very worst moment
is memorialized.
Even though we’re all
vulnerable, we also ac@vely
enjoy seeing other
scorched . . . It’s a free-for-all
where people and
organiza@ons can become
targets, and they don’t have
the power to defend
themselves.
When social media get going,
it’s not balanced. It’s almost
universally, ‘Kill, kill, kill’”
— Eric Dezenhall, quoted in The Globe
and Mail 2015
Let’s be clear. . .

3. Context
The demos is social

4. PerspectivesH+K PerspectivesH+K
Canadians love social
+ The overwhelming
majority of
Canadians use
social media daily
(84%)
+ Women (60%)
were more likely to
be ac@ve on social
media mul@ple
@mes a day
compared to men
(42%)
51%
33%
7%
3%
6%
Mul@ple @mes a day
Every day
Once a week
Once a month
Never
[Q1] How often do you use social media (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, Instagram,
LinkedIn, Pinterest, Snapchat, etc.)?

5. PerspectivesH+K PerspectivesH+K
[Q2] How much of the news you consume comes from social media?
+ Women (44%) are
twice as likely to get
at least half of their
news from social
media compared to
22% of men.
+ Canadians aged 35
and younger get most
of their news on social
media (35%), more
than any other age
group
+ 43% of Canadians who
use social media
mul@ple @mes a day
get at least half of
their news on social
media
19%
44%
13%
21%
3%
None
Some of it
About half
Most of it
All of it
A source of news

6. PerspectivesH+K PerspectivesH+K
[Q5] How often have you seen social media posts that “out” people?
+ Most Canadians
(69%) have seen
social media posts
that “out” people
at least once
+ Women (76%) are
more likely than
men (60%) to have
seen social media
posts that “out”
people
+ Younger Canadians
are more likely to
have seen social
media posts that
“out” people
20%
46%
19%
3%
Never
Once in a while
Oben
All of the @me
But aware of ‘outing’

7. PerspectivesH+K PerspectivesH+K
And aware of negatives
+ Three quarters of
Canadians (75%) see
nega@ve comments
at least some@mes,
to oben
+ The majority of
Canadians who use
social media mul@ple
@mes a day (82%)
see nega@ve
comments at least
some@mes, to oben
12%
46%
29%
6%
Never
Some@mes
Oben
Always
[Q3] How often do you see what you consider negative comments in your social
media feeds?

8. PerspectivesH+K PerspectivesH+K
It changes our behaviour
+ Nearly three
quarters of
Canadians who use
social media at least
once a day (73%)
keep themselves
from pos@ng on
social media at least
some@mes to avoid
being seen
nega@vely
27%
37%
19%
13%
Never
Some@mes
Oben
All of the @me
[Q4] How often have you kept yourself from posting something on social media out
of worry that it could negatively affect the way other people see you?

9. PerspectivesH+K PerspectivesH+K
[Q8] Please indicate whether you agree or disagree with each of the following
statements
+ Two thirds of
Canadians aged 55
and older (66%)
agree that
“ou@ng” hurts too
many innocent
people, compared
to 46% of those
aged 35 and
younger
+ Two out of three
re@red Canadians
(68%) agree that
“ou@ng” hurts too
many innocent
people, compared
to 51% of working
Canadians
19%
35%
28%
29%
54%
37%
"Ou@ng” people on social media hurts too many
innocent people
Social media is the best way for ordinary ci@zens to
fight back against corporate and government
injus@ce
Disagree Neither Agree
We aren’t happy about it

10. People + Organizations
Same drivers: Similar strategies

11. We seem to delight in the unhappiness of
others . . .
“Nothing is funnier
than unhappiness, I
grant you that. Yes, yes,
it’s the most comical
thing in the world.”
Samuel Becke?

12. Shaming takes many forms
Tone deaf behavior — gotcha

13. Shaming takes many forms
Just no restraint

14. Shaming takes many forms
Structured ‘outing’

15. Shaming takes many forms
It just gets to you sometimes

16. Shaming takes many forms
No sensitivity filter

17. So . . . can we?

18. PerspectivesH+K PerspectivesH+K
[Q6] Which of the following statements about social media “outing” is closest to
your point of view?
+ Almost half of Canadians
(47%) oppose “ou@ng”
on social media
compared to 20% of
those who support it
+ A third of Canadians
(33%) said they neither
support nor oppose
”ou@ng” on social media
+ Most Canadians over 55
(55%) oppose “ou@ng”
on social media
+ Most re@red Canadians
(58%) oppose “ou@ng”
on social media
47%
20%
33%
I don’t support “ou@ng” on social media
because it is a form of vigilan@sm that goes
against basic principles of our jus@ce
system, such as “we are innocent un@l
proven guilty” and “the right to due
process”.
I support “ou@ng” on social media because
it mostly exposes people who deserve it,
and who might otherwise go unno@ced and
unpunished.
Neither of the above
Many of us don’t like it

19. Not a good
strategy to hide

20. Neither can we
‘regulate’
responsibility…
Nor ‘socialize’ it
out of people

21. Personally we can:
Acknowledge
Apologize
Accept
And sometimes simply
refuse to be shamed

22. February 22, 2016
Companies need similar strategies

23. Sometimes . . .
Companies — or their
community managers
— do it to themselves

24. #hashtag #fail
Trying to highjack a hashtag . . .what were they thinking?

25. Why do they do this shit?

26. Even emojis can be minefields
Apple releases new ‘diverse’ emojis . . . what were they thinking?

27. But sometimes . . .
Companies are targets
for social ac@vism

28. Activists use social to ‘shame’ . . .
And use hyperbole and distortion

29. PerspectivesH+K PerspectivesH+K
+ Most Canadians (58%)
require more context
before they decide how
to view the company
+ Equal propor@ons of
Canadians said they
would view the company
nega@vely and said they
wouldn’t change their
view of the company
14%
14%
58%
14%
It would probably nega@vely
influence my view of the company
It would probably not influence my
view of the company
It really depends on what the
“ou@ng” is about
I don’t know
[Q7] Which of the following statements best describes how you would react if a
senior execuHve from a company you deal with was “outed” on social media?
Benefit of the doubt?

30. Negative sentiment
posted on social by a
user that requires a
reaction from the
company
Social Media
Issue

31. A negative social
media issue that is
amplified broadly and
receives online and
offline media attention
Social Media
Crisis

32. Managing risk

33. Social risk mitigation requires:
1. Listening
2. Knowing social ‘rules’
3. Not worrying too much about trolls
4. Understanding the social context
5. Being willing to make quick decisions
6. Being comfortable with chaos
7. Having patience to wait out the worst
8. Defining clear rules of engagement

34. Managing an assault

35. Timeliness
“Dance first. Think later. It’s the
natural order.”
Samuel Beckett
Responsiveness (Listen and Inform)
“Words are all we have.”
Samuel Beckett
Remove Offense
“Out, damn’d spot! Out, I say!—
One; two: Why, then ‘tis time to
do’t”
Macbeth, Shakespeare

36. Sincerity, Honesty, Apology
“The fool doth think he is wise,
but the wise man knows himself
to be a fool.”
As You Like It, Shakespeare
“Never ruin an apology with an
excuse.”
Benjamin Franklin
Address Misinformation
“In the landscape of extinction,
precision is next to godliness.”
Samuel Beckett

37. Commit to a fix
“Ever tried. Ever failed. No
matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail
better.”
Samuel Beckett
Be human
“The fault, dear Brutus, is not in
our stars but in ourselves.”
Julius Caesar, Shakespeare

39. 39
“Who needs poetry when you
have mockery? Not Trump
and not Cruz, who are both
products of these tex@ng,
twee@ng @mes, fluent in the
snark and vitriol that appeal
to short agen@on spans and
fit in 140-character outbursts.
— Frank Bruni, “Obnoxiousness is the
New Charisma”, New York Times,
January 9, 2015
This is the world we
live in . . .