A few days ago I was reminded that, long before Facebook and Twitter, indeed before the widespread use of email, I regularly chatted to my colleagues at Reuters “over the wires” and latterly on screen.
At first, 50 years ago, this involved what now seems a cumbersome and very slow procedure of sending a “service message” which popped up on a teleprinter on the other side of the world in a matter of minutes depending on how long a queue of items was in front of it. But by the time I retired, 17 years ago, it was instantaneous, from computer to computer, universally known as “screen topping” because that’s where the messages appeared.
The discussion we had – on Facebook, where else – swiftly turned to memories of messages we wished we’d never sent. Most frequent was the rude comment about the boss or a colleague that you had somehow managed to send to him rather than your friend across the room. And on one occasion an in-house message about a plumbing problem landed on every client’s screen worldwide because one letter in the address code had been mistyped!
But this isn't about Reuters’ history or even about the history of communications. It’s about those messages you wish you’d never sent.
It's about this:
And this:
A lot of footballers didn't think before hitting send and the UK Football Association has made a lot of money out of their remarks on Twitter -- £350,000 according to The Guardian
I'm not suggesting SFN is about to start fining you every time you press send without first rereading what you've typed and inadvertently offend someone, or make a spelling mistake (I'm a typochondriac by profession, I’m afraid!). But you know it’s good practice. Yes, this is the age of instant this and instant that. We’re on the mobile non-stop telling friends such earth-shattering news as that we’re having a coffee in Starbucks or that, to quote Jennifer Saunders in a classic episode of AbFab, you’re outside the office door and you’re about to come in.
It’s the same with texts, Tweets and comments on on-line forums (or should that be fora, the pedant in me asks!). We can’t take a minute to think about what we want to say and how to say it so it won’t cause offence. Most times it doesn't matter. But on the odd occasion when you want to tell a friend that the boss is an effing idiot it pays to check who you’re sending it to. And if you’re irritated, it pays to think carefully about what you want to say, think carefully about how to say it, write it, reread it and then hit delete. Just writing it will get rid of the irritation.
One of the problems of text messaging of all kinds is that irony, sarcasm, comedy, to give just three examples, all travel badly. There are things you can say to someone’s face that it’s impossible to say at a distance because they can’t see your face, hear your voice, get the tiny signals that show you’re joking. Which is why someone invented Smileys. But they don’t always work.
Tweets, Facebook statuses, comments on a thread when you’re in a rush or the dog’s just chewed up your best pair of shoes are easy to dash off. They’re short, to the point and fast. But how many times have you had second thoughts? Maybe I shouldn't have said that or not in that way. Will the people who read it be annoyed, upset, angry even? Have I made a fool of myself?
Tough -- it’s too late. It’s gone and there’s nothing you can do about it.
So please, people, think first, send later. And if you’re angry, walk away and have a cup of tea and/or a glass of wine and/or whisky. When you get back things will be in perspective.