“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” – An old childhood chant
There is a war being fought on many different fronts. There is the political war between countries and their leaders. There is the religious and theological war between Jews/Judaism and Muslims/Islam. There was the physical war between Gaza and Israel, that is currently amidst a cease-fire. And then there is the war being fought on Social Media. While that may sound like a joke, it is in fact a very real and current threat. Because words, and images, can indeed influence and even hurt much more than sticks and stones.
With 1 click of a button, these people who call themselves influencers — and have followings upward of thousands if not millions — are spreading messages of hatred, bigotry, anti-semitism and complete falsehoods. They are not doing research or fact-checking the words and brainwashed philosophies coming from terrorists, they are not even double checking that any of their information is indeed accurate. Instead they just choose to share the sensationalism, and in a few seconds thousands of followers, who may or may not have formed their own thoughts and opinions yet, now buy into this one-sided, biased, false narrative. And the momentum keeps building and building. 1 share turns into ten, then hundreds, thousands, millions..
Join Rabbi Jacobson to discuss how social media has taken on a life of its own, gaining power and influence. Learn how we can – and must – use this opportunity to spread goodness and kindness instead of hatred and division.
