Bystanders are nothing new.

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During the preparation of this column 19 year old Abraham Biggs, his web camera broadcasting the scene, announced his intention to commit suicide and swallowed a drug cocktail, fading into unconsciousness while about 180 watchers were tuned in. By the time some of these watchers became aware that something was terribly amiss and tried to call for help it was too late. Some of those who observed Biggs may have even encouraged him, or at the least reacted with indifference toward what should have been interpreted as a plea for help.

It's basically impossible to view this behavior as the sort that we might expect from Netizens, people who identify themselves as individuals who accept responsibilities in the online world. It's certainly nothing to be proud of. But we should also note that this behavior reflects the extent to which no real difference exists between our online and offline lives. Ten years ago, in a column that attempted to examine loneliness on the web, I referred to the 1964 murder of Kitty Genovese. Even then, more than forty years ago, not wanting to get involved, the feeling that what's happening to someone else doesn't concern us, was an issue that caused serious self-reflection in the larger societal framework (even if the extent to which people actually stood by and did nothing was apparently greatly exaggerated). Distasteful as the online behavior of the bystanders in this particular case may be, rather than reflecting on online behavior, it seems to reflect on human behavior in general.

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Go to: Bad Netizenship.