Introduction
In today’s digital world, new ideas are constantly being tossed around on social media to inform people of current events or for people to simply “tweet” out their random thoughts. Along with the digitalization of everyone’s lives comes downsides and consequences from living a life so publicized. Recent trends have shown a celebrity or influencer’s career being “washed down the drain” overnight after posts and tweets from their past come back to haunt them. This action has been named “canceling,” where a person can lose all of their following and support practically overnight after the internet discovers old, typically offensive content or actions from this person that they don’t agree with. After being canceled, this person is ostracized on social media and can receive a lot of backlash from the internet, which is not a place where people hold back on sharing their opinions.
Social media takes the action of “canceling” people very seriously, as users don’t think people with racist or hateful speech should have platforms. Canceling is not always credible; it is very easy for old clips to be misinterpreted or edited to present people in a worse light, and this can sadly result in the wrongful defamation of innocent people’s careers. Still, the aggressive manner in which the internet attacks people who have been canceled has elevated fear for many users, as they are scared they could be canceled or attacked for any minor slip-up they make on social media. But is this fear of exposure and public backlash such a new concept?
McCarthyism
In the 1950s, a campaign named “McCarthyism” arose following the new, plaguing fear of communism during the early years of the Cold War. To preface, the Cold War was a period of tension that erupted between the communist Soviet Union and the democratic United States around 1947. This war was fought through proxy wars and by the dominant ideological differences between the Soviet Union and the United States. Although there was no actual warfare taking place on American soil, panic consumed the nation with the fear of the Soviets and the possible subjugation to communism over the United States. Similar to how fear has been perpetuated in American history, the fear of Soviet communism led many Americans to begin accusing each other of being communist. Working in the United States Senate, Senator Joseph McCarthy created quite the controversy when, in 1950, he added to the communist-craze by claiming he had a list of 205 communists who were employed in the U.S. State Department. Referred to as the Red Scare, panic spread like wildfire throughout the U.S., with media and news outlets amplifying the accusations.
A set of hearings conducted by Senator Joseph McCarthy followed the panic, although no clear repercussions or punishments were placed on those accused of being communist in the U.S. government at this time. Named McCarthyism, the term describes the suspicion and targeting of government officials, celebrities, and other public figures during the communist craze that plagued the nation in the 1950s. The era of McCarthyism increased fear and accusations among all citizens, who feared losing their jobs or being blacklisted by being labeled a communist.
Cancel Culture
In recent years, the media phenomenon of “cancel culture” has gained traction. A person is typically canceled after offensive statements or past comments are dug up on a (usually) public figure, although, technically, you do not need fame to be “canceled.” Canceling does not only result from past comments resurfacing; it can be due to current actions too. This is where the credibility of “canceling” has become iffy, as many people can be quick to attack someone simply due to a personal disagreement with someone’s actions; the “canceled” person may not have actually done something hateful.
How McCarthyism and Cancel Culture Compare
Just as McCarthyism did in the 1950s, cancel culture has raised public fear around using social media. Many people are scared that making a mere post to a social media platform may get them “canceled” and destroy their career simply if their audience doesn’t agree with it. Similar to the Red Scare, evidence being labeled as “communist” or “cancellable” may be misinterpreted or manipulated to paint the person being charged in a negative light. Both of these terms reflect the public’s responses to fear and threats. It is a true flaw of society that, instead of investigating news that may be out of the ordinary, people jump to public shaming and blacklisting before they even know what they are boycotting.
Conclusion
Based on both of these models and the responses they received from the public, it is clear that public backlash and shaming are no new concepts. While these two concepts vary in their context—McCarthyism being rooted in the historical climate of the United States’ conflict with the communist Soviet Union, and modern-day cancel culture representing the culture of social media—they depict the same societal response: to blacklist and defame people’s careers without credible evidence to support such harsh claims. The phrase “history repeating itself” has been popularized for a reason, as historical incidents continue to reemerge each year. Cancel culture and McCarthyism are no different from the concept and actions of witch hunts that plagued America in Massachusetts during the 1690 Salem Witch Trials. The world has evolved since these witch trials originated, yet centuries later, the public continues to respond to fear and threats with accusations. To move forward, society must learn to engage with curiosity about people’s actions to hold them accountable. Before moving straight to judgment, maybe consider why someone acted as they did, so society can move forward in creating a new history.
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