How Social Media Divide and Equalize Society Through Cancel Culture

Your Name Instructor Name Course Number Date The Double-Edged Nature of Cancel Culture Introduction             In the 10^th episode in season six in the hit series The Game of Thrones, Cersei Lannister is subjected to a humiliating walk of atonement. Walking naked in the streets of King’s landing, the angry public pelts her with rotten vegetables, sticks, and twigs. The scene was a vivid reminder that even powerful and privileged members of society are not immune to public shaming. But this was in 290 AC. Were Cersei present in the 21^st century, she could have experienced what has come to be known as cancel culture. In recent years, cancel culture has taken over social media spaces and while some see it as necessary in keeping prominent figures in check, others see it as a dangerous trend that should be checked. In other words, cancel culture is a double-edged sword that cuts both ways. In this view, the current paper discusses how social media, through cancel culture, is dividing and equalizing our society. About Cancel Culture             Powerful public officials, influential businessmen, and celebrities are loved equally as much as they are hated by the public. A big part of the hate comes from the fact that they are usually unreachable by the large public and enjoy privileges around the law and norms of society (Ng 43). But while Cersei Lannister’s walk of shame was through the streets, today’s public shame occurs on social media where people are dragged for their misdeeds, words, or mistakes. Hence, cancel culture is the practice of shunning or boycotting and ostracizing people deemed to have spoken or acted in unacceptable manner (Clark). Since it is impossible to give such people the Cersei-like walk of shame in the modern world, social media has become the most effective platform to do so. According to Bouvier (234), social media is so effective that even brands are not immune to public uproar.             Since the start of Covid-19, there have been several prominent cases of cancel culture. Will Smith was canceled after he slapped Chris Rock on stage in the 2022 Oscars. Even after apologizing for his actions, Smith went on to resign from his membership in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Science and was subsequently banned from the Oscars for 10 years. In another case, J.K Rowling was canceled after she took to Twitter to support Maya Forstater. Forstater had lost her job as a researcher when she tweeted that “people cannot change their biological sex” (Walsh). Since her post had been labelled as transphobic, Rowlings was dragged for supporting the researcher. The most famous case, however, was the cancellation of Dave Chappelle. The famous stand-up comedian and actor received condemnation because of his utterances in his 2021 special release The Closer.  His remarks were deemed to perpetuate transphobia and therefore, seen as supporting or enabling hate against the transgender community.             Business organizations have als...