Louis CK

[Rorschach]

I wonder how things are going to shake down for Liam Neeson.

[Deacon]

Well, he has a particular set of skills...

But seriously, if there’s any sense in the world and not just empty outrage addiction, nothing negative for him will hang around for long. Someone being honest and vulnerable in describing a dark time in their life they’re ashamed of and realized was misguided and nonsensical should not resort in instant cries to decapitate him.

[I like pie]

I'd imagine he'll be fine.

I'd like to think that Terry Crews getting backlash for defending him and being told that he's not allowed to be black anymore is exposing more and more people to how ridiculous and meaningless these things are getting.

[NorthernComfort]

It's incredible that his shameful admission of a 40-year-old sin, which he clearly understood the horror of, was taken to mean that he was still one step from going on a murder spree. Humans are flawed, and admitting your worst moments takes guts. Also, the people who seem to be regulars in the outrage community are often demanding that we "have the hard conversations" ... well guess what, here's a real slice of humanity for you. Want to actually talk about it, or just grab the ol' pitchforks?

[Deacon]

Well said.

[I like pie]

I think it's a reflection of a profitable gossip culture, whether it's blogs monetizing clickbait or people on twitter seeking attention and validation.

There's a Bossip article I saw, that I won't link to, with the headline "Terry Crews Tried To Defend Wannabe Black Person Murderer Liam Neeson And Got Dragged To Old Spice Crumbles".

That's not a good faith effort to have any sort of conversation, it's pandering. It's TMZ for the black community, and people eat it up just the same. I'm guilty of indulging too, clickbait works.

That's the challenge: how do you ignore outrage when the entire reason it exists is to grab your attention? It's possible but damn it's tough sometimes.

[Deacon]

<Bender> I FIND THAT OFFENSIVE!

[NorthernComfort]

It's difficult to separate online outrage culture from the online media forms that allow it and encourage it. It's a self-fulfilling prophecy towards the lowest common denominator of content. When the only way to monetize is via display ads and only a few companies have the scale to work on conversions or better targeting, the rest of the media ecosystem is going to revolve around clickbait, outrage and other lightweight content. And twitter makes it seem real. After all, if hundreds of people are tweeting angrily, it feels like you're part of a real mob or movement. Our brains are bad at handling scale and the incredible size of the Internet.