This week, a story was broken that a 17-year-old in Pennsylvania threatened the life of Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin on an Pittsburgh Penguins Internet message board. The Capitals and Penguins are playing each other in the NHL Eastern Conference Semifinals. The juvenile posted "I'm killing Ovechkin. I'll go to jail. I don't care anymore." The Penguins notified local police, the league, and the Capitals. Whether criminal charges will be pressed is not yet known.
A story like this would not have broken 15 years ago since message boards were accessible to most people, but in an age where the Internet allows people to post whatever they want, these events are worth spilling to the public. People have started to take these posts seriously.
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This makes me wonder when online threats should be taken seriously. I doubt the 17 year old was really going to kill Ovechkin, it seems unlikely, but I think it is difficult, where the internet is concerned, to decide what should be taken seriously.
ReplyDeleteKids get on message boards, say things they don't mean, and believe they can't be punished for it. The anonymity of the internet allows people to say what they wish, much of which they would never actually do. This suggests we shouldn't take it seriously.
Unfortunately, there are also people on the web who fully intend to follow through on threats, or those who wish to cause harm to others. For instance the Craigslist killer, he used a service used by thousands, mostly safely, to find victims. The anonymity of the internet, in such cases, can be dangerous, violent, and deadly.
It seems impossible to determine what is a threat and what isn't on the internet, but I don't think there will ever be a way too. Although, we cannot do so in real life either. Anyone can be a threat, so, I guess it is better to be safe than sorry.