by By Alyssa Ignacio
If you’re going to start a career in social media, you need to consider the consequences of certain actions. Online audiences will always analyze everything you do under a fine microscope. Thus, it’s important to understand what your audience values and looks for in an influencer.
Of course, not everyone is perfect. If you or a client ever finds themselves in the crossfire of controversy, it’s not the end of the world. Accidents happen and people can change when faced with accountability. Hence, I’ve compiled a short list of things to do if you or a client faces cancel culture.
Address the situation
Only bad things come to those who stay silent in the watchful eye of the media. Therefore, part of being on the receiving end of hate is addressing what you did. People need to know that you’re aware of your actions and aren’t dismissing controversy. This part of being canceled gives you a shot a redemption. If you’re given any opportunity to redeem yourself and explain what happened, take it!
Choose to be truthful
The whole point of cancel culture is to rid the Internet of bigots and individuals who don’t deserve the power of a social platform. If you plead guilty and accept the consequences of your actions by being honest about the circumstance, audiences may recognize that you’re willing to take accountability and are open to the possibility of changing your values. Honesty goes a long way when you’re speaking to a large audience.
Don’t make excuses
So, you’re addressing the situation. In order to make it right, you can’t dismiss your actions by making excuses. From the perspective of a fan, excuses are a last-ditch effort to save your name. Instead of making excuse after excuse, admit that you were in the wrong and make the effort to change. I think you’ll find that people are more likely to forgive when faced with a sincere apology.
If you’re familiar with James Charles, then you probably know about the infamous apology video that solidified his reputation. The 14-minute-long video featured Charles trying to hold himself accountable. Although, fans didn’t think he was being sincere in his apology, rather making excuses. Ever since he released his apology, the Internet continues to shun him.
Accept the hate
When you’re cancelled, you’re going to get consistent hate regardless of what you do. The most important thing is to keep a calm mind and not overreact. Any overreaction could lead to a snowball effect of extended hate. To avoid that, act humbly and accept that, maybe, you deserve the hate. Accepting the hate is crucial if you want to rise above cancel culture and rebrand your image.
There are so many celebrities and public figures who are an afterthought because they’ve been exiled from the Internet. I hope you take my advice seriously when dealing with cancel culture because it’s something that can make or break your career.
Loved the post! Cancel culture is so prominent and creates a lot of big pop culture moments. I remember sitting and watching the James Charles ‘Bye Sister’ video on the couch before getting ready for prom. It’s a really scary thing but also crazy how much power we can give people.
Hello!
I like how you address the newly found cancel culture we have in 2023. I remember the James Charles controversy and it’s happened quite a few times. Each time he confidently addresses the incident and tries to move on. Each time losing millions of subscribers and thousands of followers. Other influencers and Youtubers deal with controversy when all eyes are on them and people want to see them fail. Usually blowing some situations out of control or calling out a serious problem. As an influencer I think your tips help to be true to themselves and their audience in owning their mistakes and promising to better themselves. The same goes for an organization if they are caught under fire or a successful company had certain internal parts mess up. Being able to address the situation and accept the problems and provide a plan of improvement going forward is the best thing to do. Not covering it up, blaming it on someone else, or not addressing it, these are the worst things to do no matter how bad. Cancel culture is a crazy new thing that hurts anyone who doesn’t share the same views or opinions as everyone else. I like how this guide helps to avoid it as much as possible and can even work to decrease the frequency in which it occurs!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on dealing with cancel culture in the social media industry! It’s definitely a challenging situation that many influencers and brands have faced. I think your advice to address the situation and be truthful is spot on. It’s important to take accountability for any mistakes and show a willingness to learn and grow from the experience. Thanks again for the helpful tips!
I loved reading your post! I think cancel culture has become so popular in social media that people will go out of their way to look up old videos of an influencer that makes them look bad. It is so prominent now that influencers have to watch everything they say or do because I feel like hate will always come first if people don’t like what they see. However, taking accountability and being sincere about it is the best thing to do. Thank you!
I really enjoyed this piece! I think it is crucial in the world of PR to understand cancel culture and how to rise above it. This is not something we are going to be able to escape, and the right PR move is to address it straight on. I think you gave really good tips and this is a guide I would definitely follow. Great job!
Alyssa, great job with this post. I appreciate the strong BE HONEST message behind all your advice, and I agree that the only chance an influencer/brand has of surviving cancellation lies in humility/accountability. I am also reminded of that YouTuber Jenna Marbles who “did the right thing” and still ended up having to leave the internet! This is fuel to your argument that dealing with cancellation is a VERY tricky subject, and should be handled very carefully. Especially given the unfortunate conceptions that a lot of people have about PR, your advice is golden.