Is Social Media Creating a "Spiral of Silence"?

In whispered tones: Recent data from Pew suggests that social media creates a "spiral of silence" related to controversial issues that is quite different from in-person dialogue on tough subjects. While outlets like Twitter or Facebook might seem like good places to express minority views and "broadening public discourse," people are leery of speaking out. Read more

You may experience difficulty in accessing the Pew article, "Social Media and the Spiral of Silence." It appeared briefly on my screen and then was replaced by the Pew website tool bar. I tried accessing it a number of ways but with no success.

One of the factors behind this "spiral of silence" is the phenomenon of cyber-mobbing. People who do not like a poster's opinion on a particular subject will gang up on that poster, not only attacking the poster's views but the poster's character. Comments may become quite vicious. This happens on Christian blogs, discussion boards, forums, and social media pages as well as non-Christian ones. The phenomenon is similar to one observed in school yards. When a group of students witness a fellow student bullying a younger or weaker student, they will join in the bullying.