In this era of social media, things are different including the way people seek justice or accountability. In recent years, social media ‘expose’ culture, especially on Facebook, has become a new way for people to call out wrongdoings, express frustration or even demand accountability.
It begins with a few screenshots, or a video, or a long paragraph explaining how someone was mistreated. These posts go viral within hours, reach thousands of people and start an endless debate. Most of the time the posts spark heated debates, emotional reactions and sometimes real-world consequences.
A man was recently arrested after a video of him harassing a woman on a Dhaka bus went viral. The attack reportedly took place because of the clothes she was wearing. The video went viral on social media and authorities acted within a day. This is one of the many videos which shows the power of social media exposure to help victims who might otherwise remain unheard.
“Nowadays, social media is the first-place people go when something bad happens, not the police,” said Rafiul Aman, a 24-year-old private university student. “It helps sometimes, but I think people should be more careful. Because it can also ruin someone’s reputation without proof.”
There are different kinds of expose posts. Each one serves different purposes for different people. For a broken-hearted boyfriend, it’s an emotional release when he shares screenshots of a private chat to tell his side of the story. When a customer exposes a restaurant for poor service or unhygienic food, it’s about raising awareness. It’s a cry for help when a citizen posts about not getting any help from authorities about his stolen phone.
Most of the time, these posts get lost after creating a debate for few hours or a day. Some of the posts also get out of control. What starts as an attempt to seek justice can quickly turn into a public trial filled with insults, mockery and misinformation. People forget someone is innocent until they’re proven guilty. They face online harassment even if they’re later proven guilty. The digital outrage turns into real life damage by personal details getting leaked and photos being shared without consent.
Tashfia Zaman, a makeup artist based in Dhaka, said she once exposed a boutique shop for selling fake products. But soon, the comment section of her post turned toxic. “It started with people thanking me for speaking up, then some people started accusing me of trying to ruin the shop’s business. I didn’t expect it to turn out like that. I deleted the post after a few hours.”
Still, many believe expose culture reflects something deeper. When people feel that their complaints will be ignored by the police, employees or institutions, they turn to social media and make it a court. Experts warn that while this can sometimes be helpful, it also can easily spread lies. That’s why users need to be more careful when sharing posts that contain sensitive information.
Expose culture shows how powerful social media can be. Now it’s up to the people to use that power wisely. Because, once something is online, it can’t easily be undone.
