Anti-social media...
It’s an easy place to connect with others, but has the all-conquering world of social media been good for fishing? Dom Garnett logs in…
IF YOU had the chance to turn back the clock to pre-social media days, would you do it?
Ironically, it’s the sort of question that could start the mother of all online rows, but I can’t be the only one wondering if there is something deeply anti-social about the way we now live and interact. However, unlike the digital devices we use, the modern world has no reset button.
Of course, there are also some big positives for anglers online. The ease with which we can now contact others is a great example. From Portland to Poland, I’ve been on fishing trips that would never have happened without Facebook. To receive messages from those who’ve enjoyed my books or these very columns is great too.
In theory, then, social media should be a recipe for togetherness and more enlightened debate. But in reality all those screens often have an effect more similar to road rage, as we watch formerly sane people turn into reactive, far less reasonable animals.
It is no coincidence that the likes of Donald Trump thrive in this age of instant spleen. Everything is about getting an immediate response or being right. Once upon a time, we would actually listen to others and accept they might have different opinions. Nowadays we tend to just react, and because we’re many miles apart with no face-toface etiquette to follow, blood pressures are raised at the touch of a button.
Are we creating healthy debate, or just division? Whether the topic is otters, immigrants or a dubious recent catch, tempers are lost quicker than a 20lb carp on a whip. We act as if winning some pointless online argument is a substitute for real world action, while an increasing number of exchanges end in threats of violence. More subtle but just as negative as keyboard warfare, however, is the way Facebook and other platforms create jealousy and ‘fear of missing out’. It’s so easy for screen addicts to construct heavily edited online versions of their lives, in which blanks never occur and even breakfast was so amazing it had to be shared.
It used to be just once a week that you’d see others’ top catches in Angling Times. These days, you can see a dozen lifetime bests at any given hour. Fish bigger than you’ll ever catch, from anglers you’ll never meet, on waters you’ll never fish. Is all this gloating really healthy? And how does it feel for the average angler, who gets to fish once a week if he’s lucky?
Other than spending less time online, the answers to this digital deluge are thankfully simple: just be kinder to others. Think more, react less! Nobody needs to be right all the time, or project a fantasy existence to collect ‘likes’. Becoming more advanced is absolutely no guarantee of becoming more civilised.