The beautiful world of the internet, specifically social media, is an amazing platform that allows people to share their thoughts and beliefs. It connects people from across the globe and gives them a medium through which they can communicate. But, does anonymity ruin the beauty of the internet? 

    Being unknown can make people braver and more open to acting in ways they normally would not to the point where they do things or say things they wouldn't do if their identity was known. This concept is the main reasoning for cyberbullying. 

    The Internet has been "an electronic masked ball, a place where people can play with new identities and get off on the frisson of being somebody else" (Grossman). When a meme is created, there is no tag line that shows who the creator of the meme was or where it came from. This allows individuals to post whatever they choose, whenever they choose, without any consequence. Offensive memes are the most popular within the meme culture, but only because no one can be held accountable or blamed for the offense. It carries the idea that “everyone thinks it, but no one will actually say it.”

    A keen example of this was the viral vaccination memes. Beauty influencer and social figure, Kat Von D, mentioned in one of her interviews that she held an anti-vaccination position. This caused a mass uproar within social media and as expected, memes were created. However, as the “joke” went on and more time had passed, the memes became more and more aggressive toward villainizing and attacking those who did not believe in vaccinations. Many internet disputes had sprung between complete strangers. Attackers and attackees, however, remained anonymous, allowing them to say whatever they wanted to, at whichever level of intensity they choose.