There’s a fine line between humor and harassment. Because the internet allows for instantaneous dissemination of information, often anonymously and with no fact-checking, there is great potential for abuses of power. And when these abuses are excused as “funny,” it’s even more difficult to enforce accountability for perpetrators. 

The recent controversy between Kanye West and Kim Kardashian exemplifies this problem of the digital age. Although Kardashian filed for divorce from West last March, he’s refused to accept her decision, and has recently taken to ranting on Instagram. In one post, he extolled in all caps, “Please God bring our family back together.” In another, he referred to Pete Davidson, Kardashian’s boyfriend, as “skete” and threatened him with physical harm. West has deleted these posts, but like all news regarding the Kardashian clan, the scandal has caught fire. 

Like most absurd celebrity antics, this situation seems funny at face value. West’s comments are so ludicrous one can’t help but laugh, and they’ve spurred a plethora of memes and parodies. But when we contextualize his behavior, as most entertainment media has failed to, it becomes evident that he is participating in a pattern of abuse. Threatening violence against an ex’s partner is abuse. Gaslighting and “love bombing,” or showering someone with unwanted affection, as West did when he called himself Karshadian’s “biggest fan” in response to her requests for him to stop, is abuse. Of course, his treatment of Kardashian doesn’t vindicate her for her history of anti-Blackness, perpetuation of unattainable beauty standards, and obscene capitalist exploitation. But it’s important that we clearly condemn West’s behavior, as it’s dangerous modeling for the throngs of young men who consider themselves his fans. 

For all of its potential for good, the internet enables abusive behavior. Any message you send or picture you take can be screenshotted, taken out of context, and shared with dozens of people you didn’t intend to see it. Undoubtedly, Kardashian didn’t want screenshots of her frustrated text exchanges with West to be posted on Instagram. But they were, and that is an invasion of her privacy. Unfortunately, these digital invasions of privacy occur far too frequently at our own school. 

This year, we’ve seen a lot of McCaskey Instagram accounts pop up. Although they aren’t inherently toxic, they’ve often been used to achieve toxic ends. For instance, through various McCaskey “confession” accounts, anyone can anonymously submit a confession about anyone else, even in the form of slander or insults without justification. While many of these accounts are well-intentioned platforms for friends to gently tease each other, they also post any submissions without the consent of those featured in photos, meaning they can sometimes be used for harassment. I experienced this myself, when a picture of me and someone I had just started dating was posted without my consent. I wasn’t ready to expose my relationship to the entire school, but my agency in that decision was taken away from me. 

“The harm these accounts do is tremendous. None of them have anything of value to post or say – it uses the worst instincts of teenagers for attention. They use dog whistles,” said a McCaskey student who chose to remain anonymous.

That’s not to say the internet isn’t a powerful tool for calling out abusers. And sometimes, the occasional petty post is warranted and therapeutic. But the rumor mill is insidious and poisonous. It’s also pervasive. Nearly everyone I know has been negatively affected by a rumor, and often, these rumors catch on through group chats, Instagram, and Snapchat. The Kanye debacle is an important reminder that nothing we post ever truly disappears, as screenshots circulate and our posts haunt us for longer than we intended. I’m absolutely guilty of this as well. We all need to be more conscious of the implications of our online behavior – and when it’s no longer funny.