Society: Cyberbullying: four influencers testify
- Home
- News
Cyberbullying: four influencers testify
On social networks, insults and threats rule the roost. A destructive social phenomenon of which influencers are one of the privileged targets. In French-speaking Switzerland, four of them – Birdyy, Nidonite, Sami Loft and Anna Maradan – testify without filter, denouncing the behavior of “haters”.
Share
Keep
Share this article
Messenger
GetPocket
In his office in Carouge, Cédric Matjabo, “aka” Birdyy, is accompanied by his entire team for our interview: from his “community manager” to his stylist. With more than 1.3 million subscribers on his YouTube page, the 26-year-old influencer is a hoax figure throughout the Francophonie. Since his debut, he has developed a loyal "fanbase" that awaits the release of each of his "prank videos". “The more subscribers you have, the more you are entitled to your share of enrages. I left Twitter, for example. On this network, it's crazy, I was a prey”, cowardly with a disillusioned smile the Genevan. The insults he receives are often racist: “Dirty Black!” But he scrolls them with the back of his finger. “I don't store screenshots on my iPhone. Why would I waste time profiling them when they, after posting their hateful post, forget about me and go play sports?” From his first negative message in “You are a tramp” mode to what lands in his inbox today – because people take the time to send him vindictive emails – he sees that the hate is not changing. “Commentary content for 2022 remains the same as 2010. It’s been looping!”
He looks back on a "bad buzz" two years ago, of which he still has a bitter memory. Victim of a raid by subscribers who supported another influencer following a personal conflict, he received more than 30,000 hateful messages in one evening. His relatives are worried. "What are you doing? My solution: show that I don't care. I strongly advise against making a response video.” And since then, he has disabled notifications. “You shouldn't be afraid to talk about the violence of cyberbullying, because everyone experiences it. If you are strong in spirit, you manage, but a bad comment can destroy someone, kill them”, warns Birdyy. To future youtubeurs, he advises to prepare mentally to undergo "waves of hatred, because everything can go very quickly". Especially on new platforms like TikTok, which he describes as “a space for everything and anything”. “This is the clear path to disaster!” Humor and derision as means of defense have their limits. Between two photo shoots, he says that a stranger set fire to his door. "I don't believe in justice, so I didn't even press charges. What are they going to do about all this?”
>> Read also: The business of influencers, how does it work?
" title="Society: Cyberbullying: four influencers testify" >
In Fribourg, in the apartment of Nida-Errahmen Ajmi, better known by her pseudonym Nidonite, her famous motorcycle suit is still hanging next to her sails. At 26, the young Muslim illustrator stands out with her drawings, but also for her interventions in the webosphere. “By existing, I militate. It is sometimes tiring”, she begins. “As soon as you start having people following you on the networks, there will be people who will criticize your digital identity. Influencers become a rigid symbol and some project their fight, their frustrations and even their fears", analyzes the one who sometimes keeps offensive messages as proof. "I would dream of studying the sociology of this population hidden behind their screen, of creating a geography of profiles and to produce a glossary of their so poorly constructed arguments,” plans Nidonite. La Romande has been collecting equipment since the start of its activity in 2016. “For me, they are like dogs that bark but do not bite. Me, I bite, on the other hand, and I would not hesitate to use the legal route, ”she adds.
Like many feminist influencers, she is often threatened with death. “A youtubeur, last year, laughed in front of the camera saying that I had to throw myself from the top of the Col de la Forclaz. People are ruthless mainly because I seek to create a space for women to express themselves. So obviously, I suffer. His first Instagram account, for example, was banned following a raid by “haters” who falsely reported him en masse. Unfazed, she opens a new account. “Thanks to them, since my account has been rehabilitated, I am doubly present today.” She has nearly 70,000 subscribers.
When she feels overwhelmed by too much digital attention, she moves away from the networks to better come back. “With my sarcasm, I tend to minimize, but the consequences can be very serious. People's eyes weigh on our shoulders,” she says with a touch of poetry. She feels isolated at times, but not depressed. “I am aware that I have built armor. Waves of hate don't bother me, because I don't take it as a personal attack. On the other hand, observing the stupidity of people on the internet, yes, it touches me. The Fribourgeoise knows that cyberbullying will continue to target her, because of her status. “I am a racialized woman of Tunisian origins who carries a controversial religion. I bother Islamophobes and Muslim extremists alike.”
The young 19-year-old from Lausanne welcomes us warmly with tea and pastries from Iran, his father's country of origin. Six years ago, he opened his first YouTube page, dedicated to Apple products. The student then launches the Don't Tell That to Siri channel, a series of humorous shorts. One hundred and seventy-five thousand subscribers later, each video is viewed between 2 and 3 million times. With success comes the 10,000 comments per post, some of which are very virulent. “Since I showed up online, it’s been a parade. I have always faced waves of hatred. The insults are similar: dirty PD, tarlouze and other attacks on my physique”, summarizes Sami Loft. To protect himself, he tries to install Bodyguard, an automatic hate comment moderation application. But Internet users easily divert it. “Haters even bought packets of dislikes to disturb me, says the one who has taken a lot of distance with this type of behavior today. I no longer dwell on these profiles, but I know that some are coming back. It looks like they are on a mission and are tracking me on all my networks.”
On TikTok, where he has 1 million subscribers, he chooses to show a more lifestyle aspect, offering sewing tutorials or “foody” advice. “Statistically, I have way more negative comments, but I hardly see them anymore. I also know in advance the type of homophobic reactions that my post will generate. Resilient but concerned, he returns to a violent publication he received in 2021: a death threat by video. "It's not the first time, but there the guy made a montage with the images of a shooting game where you see that they assassinate us with one of my friends", shows us the influencer on his smartphone.
Despite the intensity of the negative flow he receives, Sami Loft has never spoken to his family or a psychologist about it. "I didn't want to leave social media. But it is better to avoid politicized content.” He also says he never filed a complaint. “There are so few means of action.”
In Lausanne, Anna Maradan receives us in her bright apartment where she films her numerous publications. At 27, she still works part-time in administration, but is developing her influencer activities on Instagram. In five years, she has built a solid network, evolving in the fashion and beauty niche. It is her French community that comments the most on her productions. And so far, the young woman has passed between the drops of packs of trolls. "I obviously received small attacks on my physique, but I have not yet suffered a flood of violent comments", realizes the Instagrammer, aware of her privilege. She admits to deleting the few negative messages, as if not to leave this dark trace on her profile. “I also block problematic users and any accounts that person may create.”
She knows, however, that everything can change in a few clicks, which stirs up the "haters", on the lookout for a next cybervictim. "It's a bit of self-censorship, but I avoid certain content so as not to be lynched, such as talking about the pandemic. Me, it's out of conviction, but I also know that influencers refuse to work with fur brands so as not to provoke the wrath of animal protection activists. "Anna Maradan observes that, on the Web, users are allow for more acidic language, which few would use in the non-virtual world. “If I am ambushed by “haters”, I will stop exposing myself on the networks. I don't want to make myself sick when it's an activity based on benevolent exchanges."
>> Read also: Cyberbullying: the end of impunity for "Haters"?
>> To talk more about it, meet on Wednesday, February 9 at 6 p.m. live on the “L’illustré” Instagram account with influencers Birdyy, Nidonite and Sami Loft.
By Jade Albasini published on January 27, 2022 - 08:47Follow topics by email
By chatlivecamsex
