Over 3,000 offensive tweets sent to UK parliamentarians dailyAccording to a BBC investigation into the range of attacks on social networks where politicians admit they are afraid to speak their mind on important issues.
The research analyzed some 3 million tweets directed at lawmakers over a six-week period between March and April and found that more than 130,000, around one in 20, could be classified as seriously offensive.
The BBC revealed that Women MPs were more likely to be called “rude” and “ignorant” and subjected to sexist languageWhereas their male counterparts were more likely to be called “liars”.
Politicians acknowledged that harsh criticism was part of their work, but crossed a line when language was used that was sexist, racist or overly sexist.
In that sense, Labor MP Jess Phillips said the levels of abuse that exist have created an unstable culture in which politicians are afraid to speak their mind on important issues.
She said politicians acknowledged that harsh criticism was part of her work, but added that she was sexist, racist or overtly sexist when the language was used.
“Sadly, women politicians rarely receive threats of rape and sexual violence in large numbers, either directly or indirectly,” she stressed.
“When it’s not about an issue, but the way you see yourself, your kids and family, then you cross the line,” he said.
He also said he was aware of allies who voted against his principles on a range of issues such as Brexit and military intervention in Syria to avoid backlash on social media.
Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson led the most tweets with offensive expressions, with 19,000 messages, according to an investigation that used “Perspective,” a tool that uses artificial intelligence to detect abusive comments on the network.
Other MPs in the same position were former Culture Minister Nadine Dorris (9,000), Rishi Sunak (9,000), then Chancellor of the Exchequer and Labor leader Sir Keir Starmer (8,000).
Even then, The MP who received the most derogatory tweets was the deputy at that time.
Among them was Mansfield Conservative MP Ben Bradley, who was mentioned in hundreds of tweets classified as toxic after advocating for the privatization of Channel 4.
While Labor MP James Murray received more than 300 offensive tweets in a single day when he spoke about transgender rights in a radio interview.
Meanwhile, Conservative MP Flick Drummond quit Twitter in 2021, citing “out of control” abuse.
He said he left the platform because trolls could hide behind anonymous Twitter handles.
“You don’t know who they are. It’s just disgusting, and I have to say my mental health has improved a lot since I got out.”
Ellen Judson, director of the Center for Social Media Analysis at the think tank Demos, said social media is becoming increasingly “democratically dangerous” because of the way it is shaping debate and normalizing malpractices.
Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson leads the most tweets with aggressive expressions with 19,000 messages
“People should be able to criticize their MPs and MPs should be held accountable, which is essential for democracy,” he said.
However, he added that if what you’re seeing is abuse and then it affects the way MPs vote and think about the decisions they make, which is based on listening to people and engaging with public experience. No, then he is just responding to a response. Fear of abuse from minorities who troll out loud.”
In that sense, Phillips said some topics in the network had become difficult to handle.
“The kind of abuse that happens on the network, and certainly on Twitter, means that Twitter is not the place to argue.” Highlighted the deputy, who gave the “trans debate” as an example.
“Regardless of your point, people don’t want to touch it and most lawmakers will have a subtle point of view. There’s no way to win in that space, it’s too terrible,” he said.
