Several schools in Doncaster have been targeted by ‘Gossip Girl style’ social media accounts, according to Doncaster Free Press.
The rumour-based accounts, anonymously set up on Facebook and Instagram, have been set up toslut shame schoolchildren in the same way that people were exposed for their misdemeanors, failings and hookups on the US TV show. They feature pictures of young people and then reveal their alleged sexual activities, without the knowledge of the person being written about.
Gossip Girl, the TV show, was all we talked about for a minute when it was first released in 2007. The entire show was based on the writing of an anonymous blogger who chronicled the misdemeanors, illicit hookups, bust ups, whereabouts and failings of their contemporaries at school, and later college, in Manhattan. Characters would get alerts on their now outdated flip phones whenever a new post went up.
The real life accounts are believed to have been used in at least seven of Doncaster’s secondary schools. South Yorkshire police have now been brought in to warn pupils that such accounts are illegal, and that the creators of the accounts, as well as those who comment on them, could face criminal charges.
The intrigue of the show was, undoubtedly, it’s appeal but who didn’t come away from watching it being glad that their school experience was nothing like that.
From what The Debrief can see on Instagram these rumour and slut shaming accounts are not specific to Doncaster. A quick trawl through Instagram reveals almost one for every major town in England.
The profiles, which are often titled things like ‘slagsof…(insert place name), say things like ‘send me pictures if the biggest slags in…’, requesting other users to name and shame their contemporaries. One private profile, seen by The Debrief on the social network, said ‘Dm me all the gossip…will scribble name out…give me a shoutout to be accepted.’
Pictures on these accounts are captioned with accusations and rumours such as so and so is ‘known for her famous fanny picture and bending her ass out’ or this girl is ‘known for slagging it on a football pitch and taking the piss out of cancer, dutty bitch.’
Today we are all potentially more exposed online than ever before. Offences such as revenge porn have now been made illegal, but all too often it seems that people don’t think about what they are posting online. However, writing about someone unfavourably is libel, and the defamation of someone’s character in this way is illegal.
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This article originally appeared on The Debrief.