let’s talk bookish | it’s your book blog and you can rage if you want to…right?
Hi, friends! Guess what! Today’s another exciting discussion brought to you by the weekly book blog meme, “Let’s Talk Bookish!” And it’s gonna be juicy! Today I want to talk to you about online writing and accountability—so buckle up for a rollercoaster of a ride!
“Let’s Talk Bookish” is a weekly discussion meme hosted by Aria of Book Nook Bits and created by Rukky of Eternity Books
can you write whatever you want?
Can bloggers just write whatever they want? Or are there boundaries they should respect even on their own platform? If a blogger is called out for something they post, are they obligated to respond?
I’m so hyped for this week’s question prompts because I think there are a lot of dimensions to this particular topic. Let’s start out with the basics…
As a book blogger of eight years, I’ve always made it clear from the beginning of my book blogging journey that here on my blog honesty is a main priority. So, naturally, my answer to the question of “Can bloggers just write what they want?” is immediately, “Yes…” However. That “yes” has a couple of BIG ol’ “but“s tacked on.
The major “but” that comes after the “yes” is that, to quote a modern saying here in the US, “freedom of speech does not mean freedom from accountability.” In other words, yes, you can write what you want on your blog, but that doesn’t mean people can’t react to it as they choose and/or hold you personally—and sometimes even legally—accountable for what you write.
Now, I’m American and I’m sure many of y’all are obnoxiously aware that many Americans pride themselves on our constitution’s enshrinement of “freedom of speech.” What many Americans either don’t know or fail to acknowledge is that there are several legal caveats to US citizens’ First Amendment freedom of speech, namely restrictions on public obscenity, incitement of violence, and diatribes including profane personal insults directly stated to an individual. This of course gets a little tricky when you consider questions like “is the internet considered a public space since it is publicly available?” and “how do these national laws interact with international laws?” But, to keep things short: in the US you can be held legally accountable for some obscenity, incitement of violence, and some instances of profanity that you publish online. There are also libel laws, meaning you cannot intentionally publish anything defaming another person without risk of legal ramifications. So, the bottom line is that you can write what you want on your blog, but particularly when addressing other individuals directly, you do run the risk of legal consequences if you take things too far.
But, in all honesty, facing legal consequences for what you write on your blog in the US is incredibly unlikely. That being said, if you write something that your blog’s readers/community may find particularly heinous, you are likely to face social consequences, on both a communal and/or an individual level. Once you publish something on the internet, it’s out there for everyone to see, and part of being a responsible blogger/person in general is recognizing that once this happens, people will hold you accountable for the words you’ve written in literally any way they see fit. And if you’ve written something you truly stand by, then you gotta be willing to be okay with that and to let it go.
Speaking of being held accountable, that brings me to the next question, “If a blogger is called out for something they post, are they obligated to respond?” The short answer is that for me, personally, I think that the answer to that question is, “No.” While it might be nice for the parties calling a blogger out if the blogger did respond, at the end of the day, you’re never owed a response from anyone when you call them out. Of course, if a blogger wants to respond (whether it’s to defend their words/action or to say they’ve changed their mind), then they can. But they’re definitely not required to.
I think this is where accountability can get a little sticky. A lot of individuals call other people out from a place of anger, and oftentimes, whether that anger is valid or not so valid, that drives individuals to want a response to their anger that matches it in intensity. In part, this may be because we want to feel like we have been heard. If someone steps on my foot and breaks my toe, then just stands there staring at me, and I cry out to them, “Ow! You broke my toe!” I wouldn’t want them to respond by just walking away like nothing had happened and they didn’t hear me. I’d want them to respond appropriately, preferably by apologizing and maybe calling an ambulance. I’d want them to at least acknowledge that they’d caused me pain. But the truth is, as nice as that response would be, that other person is in no way obligated to validate my pain or to do anything about it. And that sucks. However, for me, personally, as a Black/Lebanese/Cherokee disabled woman at my wise old age of nearly 28, I’ve learned that I don’t need anyone else’s validation of my pain—or of anything I might feel and/or experience. It is enough to know that I know it, and to be able to move on (although perhaps I might grumpily think to myself “Gee, that person was a real ass!”, before moving on 😉). Then again, I’ve also never been one to hold grudges or been someone with a desire to hang around in clouds of negativity, that’s just not me.
The internet’s a weird little space. It’s something which can feel very private and intimate (especially when you’re running a personal blog or social media account), but in reality is incredibly public. And that can put us as content creators in some tricky spots. As an anthropology student, one of the first things I learned is that one paradox of humanity is that we crave freedom but when we have true freedom we also can intentionally and/or accidentally end up restricting the freedom of others around us. The internet and the issue of online speech really creates a microcosm displaying this paradox at its fullest. At the end of the day, it is important to remember that your voice and what you say is powerful. As book bloggers, we know that words have the power to build and destroy worlds with a single sentence. It’s always good to remember this when blogging. Your voice is powerful. Your voice matters. So use it wisely.
spill the beans, friends!
- Do you think you can write whatever you want on your blog?
- What do you think bloggers should do when they’re called out?
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I really try to stay away from controversial subjects on my blog, but I like what you said about freedom of speech. I like to think I can say anything I want on my blog, but I try very hard not to offend anyone who may stop by. But, that’s my choice. If I were to be called out, I think I would possibly respond, unless it’s an outlier, or just one person, and then I would just move on. It all depends.
like the stereotypical sagittarius i am (lol) i try to say things on my blog with honesty and conviction, even if i don’t think others will agree or like what i’ve said. the *convictions* part is really important to me, because if i’ve said something with conviction, at least i’ll know what my intentions were and that i can stand behind my resultant decisions. but i also try to be very balanced about how i look at issues, and try to understand others’ perspectives, even if i may ultimately disagree with them. i also stay away from ad hominem attacks, because a) they’re insulting and b) they cheapen any point i make. i’ve always been someone who’s never thought much of what others think of me, meaning if they’re committed to misunderstanding me, then so be it, i’m not going to try to argue them out of it. but if someone comes to a discussion or a debate with me with an open mind, then i’m happy to respond with an equal amount of openness. i also try to be considerate of others’ feelings, even if i disagree with the point they’re making, especially if i can see that they’re coming from an emotional place. anyhoo, all of this to say there’s a lot that goes into my decision to speak my truth on my blog, but i know many people don’t feel comfortable always doing the same, and that’s perfectly alright too.
It’s probably a sign of how long I’ve been following book blogs but when you talk about people getting angry of book bloggers, I think of Kathleen Hale going to a reviewer’s door and then writing about it, and Richard Brittain, who hit a blogger with a wine bottle.
Obviously, I think those reactions are far far too much. I think book bloggers can and should talk about their honest opinion about the books they read, even if they don’t like it. If the author takes offence, I think it’s fine for them to respond in a comment or even in their own blogpost, but I think physical and cyber attacks are taking things a step too far.
So I guess… I think I’m for people speaking their minds, but it shouldn’t be taken overboard.
thanks for dropping by, eustacia! i definitely agree—no one should feel like they are in danger simply for speaking their mind (even if what they have to say is rather unpleasant)!
Some great points you’ve raised here! 😀 That very fine line to tightrope as a content creator. Speaking as a short story blogger, I haven’t been faced with that dilemma in a serious way before, but if the subject matter’s quite dark / explicit I’ll definitely add a Content Warning to warn readers beforehand just as a basic courtesy heads-up. I’ll never be able to second-guess what my readers will enjoy, so best to err on the safe side and let them know “yo, this story gets pretty dark later.”
Thanks for explaining it so clearly!
thank you, tom, and thanks for dropping by! it’s always a nice courtesy to give content warnings. when speaking/writing, i always try to be mindful about providing others at least as much respect as i would like someone to give me. i think that’s a good rule of thumb to go by (and then you can modify it if someone asks for something specific).