Social media growing ever more toxic, say Gazette readers

A poll on our website asked ‘Is social media becoming more toxic?'

And a whopping 84% of those who responded said they believed the atmosphere on sites such as Twitter, Facebook and Instagram was becoming less tolerant and more confrontational.

Just 16 per cent disagreed.

Several readers took the chance to have their say.

Dan Ward said: “It's an absolutely poisonous concoction of attention-seeking, unaccountability, narcissism, the permanently & loudly offended & pile-on culture bullying.

“Yet here I am contributing to it again.”

Jim Tansey said the situation was a reflection of wider problems: “Society is more toxic, never mind social media.”

Rachel Thompson-Chapman agreed: “It’s because the country is getting worse,” she said.

“People are less tolerant and with the rise of the far right people seen to think it’s acceptable, our society needs to change in a whole.”

Mira Tömbii and Oliver Wallhead thought things had always been bad.Maria wrote: “Social media has always been toxic,” while Oliver said: “Society has always been like this in my opinion.

“Social media just makes it more visible, so people clutch their pearls and think the world is going to hell in a hand basket, when in fact things are just the same as they have ever been.”