A few days ago, r&b singer Ciara was feeling some kind of way about some of these vicious bloggers that like to attack celebrities via the internet and she decided to write an open letter to them. Considering the fact that I’m not a blogger, I knew that what she was saying didn’t pertain to me. But of course, being Sonica Jackson, I’m a writer and a commentator and I wouldn’t be myself if I didn’t give my input about what she said. And basically, I strongly believe that she has a very good point about everything that she said. She was spot on.
For those of you who didn’t get a chance to read her open statement, here a lil’ snippet of it:
“I used to sometimes like visiting some of the blog sites to see what new things are happening in the world! Things like cool photos, current events, etc. But nowadays it seems like there’s a competition with sites on “Who Can Tear Someone Down the Most.” The stories are going from cool and creative to pure drama. Even the comment sections are beginning to get out of control and people are using the platforms to exercise a false sense of power. People sure do have a lot of courage when they are anonymous. It’s like a “Who Can Say the Nastiest Comment Game.” I click onto some of the comments from something as fun as an Instagram post that you’re sharing with your fans, and a person finds a way to turn a positive post into a negative. I think to myself, “I could pick this person apart so bad but what for? Why act ugly like them?” It honestly takes the fun out of it when people seem so miserable. Or at least that’s how I view someone wasting their energy to tear someone down, just plain miserable. They could be using that to do something much more productive. If only they could channel their energy towards positivity, it could make a difference in their own life as well as influence others. It’s kind of scary for the kids coming up, because even if a parent doesn’t allow their kids to have blog site access at home, they may still have access at school or other places. It’s now almost impossible to protect your kids from the vile things people say on blog sites today, and it’s even worse when kids hear hurtful things about themselves, their parents or other family members. In some cases kids have even resorted to suicide due to “cyber-bullying.”
You can read her full letter on her website, www.onlyciara.com but for now, let me just say this:
I, myself, have been on certain websites where bloggers (or whatever you wanna call them) have completely beat people down to the ground with their words. One website in particular gets a kick out of talking terribly about celebrities’ kids which should definitely be a no-no. What’s so sad about some of these websites is that they have a gazillion followers on things that have absolutely no value. For example, why should we care where a celebrity decided to go for dinner?
Most of these websites want to pry into a celebrity’s life and find out every little detail that they can to use it against them and unfortunately, that’s the life that you signed up for the minute that you become famous. As for me, I don’t go looking for what it is that a celebrity is doing or has got themselves involved in because I’m not a gossip site. That’s not my interest. I’m a writer and my website is actually designed for writing articles about various topics, giving motivation to other authors, etc. But if I feel the need to share my insight on what has been in the news in regards to a celebrity, then I will do just that.
But most gossip sites are into getting “the dirt”, not realizing that what they say about someone can have a long-term negative effect on their lives. If you’re gonna spend energy tearing someone down, at least spend the same amount of energy building them back up. Be honest about what you have to say but also be mindful that the person that you’re talking about is HUMAN. They are NOT perfect and neither are you.
As for me, I actually take pleasure in writing a wonderful article about a celebrity which is why I started the Diamond of the Week category on my website. This category spotlights the achievements that a celebrity has made at that particular time. As you can tell from my site, I don’t have a category that says Jackass of the Week and I refuse to have one because I’m not the type of individual that likes to give people inhumane treatment. However, if you’ve done something and said something that was really out of pocket, then I will write an article about it but it will come from a place of tough love. And why? Because we all need it. We all need someone that will get on our case when we’re doing something foolish but they will also point out our good qualities and tell us how amazing we are and can be.
So Ciara, with all that being said, this is what I have to say in regards to your letter: Whether you are doing something bad or doing something good, you will get talked about. Whether you are living or dead, you will get talked about. That’s how this world is and it’s been that way even before you were born. The way that you handle the situation is what is gonna make a difference. Like my grandma used to say, “if they talked about Jesus, they most certainly are gonna talk about you.” And when you are a celebrity, the chit chat gets worse because you’re in the limelight. All you can do is stay focus on what it is that you’re trying to accomplish and press towards the mark.
On the flip side, don’t do something absolutely crazy and then expect for a blogger not to comment on it. Yes, it’s your life but if you’re in the public eye acting like an asshole, it will definitely get noticed. A lot of times, celebrities give people a reason to say things about them because of the ridiculous things that they do. So don’t get mad when they voice their opinion. You don’t have to listen to what it is that they have to say but you can’t control what it is that they have to say.
If a person is not threatening your family or threatening you, then don’t even worry about what a blogger has to say about you. It’s a waste of time because they are still gonna say whatever they wanna say about you regardless of what you may think about it. The only thing that you can do is ignore them. Live your life, live your dream, and block the haters from your mind. If you decide to be like a certain celebrity that I know that chooses to cuss them out at the drop of a dime, all you’re doing is giving them ammunition to have more to say about you. Don’t allow crazy retaliation to be the reason why a blogger gets their bills paid.
Sonica
