So You've Been Publicly Shamed by Ronson - Jon (2015) Hardcover

Jon Ronson presents us with another very fine, off kilter piece of investigative journalism, exploring the strange phenomenon of shame and public shaming. Using a variety of real cases of shaming, he seeks the common denominator. As often happens in Ronson's work, we learn the reality is weirder and more complicated than we might hope.

Fascinating and thought provoking! Jon Ronson has managed to interview several people who were involved in public shaming, on both sides -- dishing it out and taking it -- which is surely a tribute to his ability to talk to anybody. Even I who avoid social media whenever I can, have heard of the people who made apparently thoughtless remarks that were then broadcast all over the world bringing down scorn and threats upon them. Careers were savaged. Now didn't it feel good to know they got their just desserts? Oh how much more complicated it is than that! We know nothing about them except that one or two sentence description that makes us rush to judgment. Ronson takes us through the stories of these people, shows us who they are and how they did not deserve this treatment. He gets into those who don't feel shame or have learned not to feel it, and how to salvage your reputation online.

The personal stories of public shaming described in Ronson's book are horrifying, and should be mandatory reading for individuals with Internet personas that might not be perceived from the outside as strictly "normal." These stories are used to effectively introduce some of the historically questionable research and science around shaming and mob mentality. Approaches to counteract the powerful impact of shaming (public and private) will be counterintuitive to many readers. I suspect there's enough material here to launch a few doctoral research theses...

This was a great read! So thought provoking! So eye-opening! Really made me think deeply about the nature of people.... the nature of shame. I did cry several times durign reading the book just thinking of how ruthless people can be, how "damaged" we all seem to be when the anonymity provided by the crowd embraces us and cripples our emotional intelligence!

This was a very readable book with information that made me think. It was a quick read and Jon Robson is a very readable author. It makes me think twice about joining the mob of offended people on social media.

I found this book to be just fascinating. The title is certainly intriguing, but it was also a rare book that actually made me change my opinions on an issue. And THAT doesn't happen very often. I also think in the research and writing of this book, author Jon Ronson had a similar experience.

One of his first quick examples involves an LA Fitness that was shamed on social media because they wouldn't cancel the membership of a couple who had lost their jobs and couldn't afford the fees. The result of that was that LA Fitness backed down - a story that makes one believe in the "power of the people".

"Something of real consequence was happening. We were at the start of a great renaissance of public shaming. After a lull of almost 180 years (public punishments were phased out in 1837 in the United Kingdom and in 1839 in the United States), it was back in a big way. When we deployed shame, we were utilizing an immensely powerful tool. It was coercive, borderless, and increasing in speed and influence. Hierarchies were being leveled out. The silenced were getting a voice. It was like the democratization of justice."

He may have started this project with that feeling, I don't think he believed this at the end.

One famous (infamous) example of modern day public shaming was the story of Justine Sacco - a woman who had made a VERY ill-thought out tweet at the beginning of a plane flight to Africa - and whose life was ruined by the time she landed. (To confirm how long public shaming can stay with you - I just typed "Justine S" into a search engine - her name was the first result and this happened in 2013.) As Ronson researches her story, and more importantly, meets and talks to Justine, the far reaching implications of a mistaken action that took only seconds to take, becomes very clear to him.

"A life had been ruined. What was it for: just some social media drama? I think our natural disposition as humans is to plod along until we get old and stop. But with social media, we've created a stage for constant artificial high drama. Every day a new person emerges as a magnificent hero or a sickening villain. It's all very sweeping, and not the way we actually are as people. What rush was overpowering us at times like this? What were we getting out of it?"

While most of what Ronson examines is what the shaming does to the shamee - but also - what it says about those who participate. I don't remember him using the term "mob mentality" - but that phenomenon is the underlying message of these case studies.

The portion of the book that had the greatest impact on me was Ronson's conversations and dealing with judge Ted Poe. (I, and maybe others know of him without knowing him - the judge that imposes sentences on people like standing on street corners holding signs about their crimes. What I knew of him made me think he was cruel and something like a "hanging judge". WOW did I have a different opnion after reading this part of the book and what we has to say about the people he dealt with.

And I think (feel) the same thing happened to Ronson. As he speaking with Judge Poe, "Social media shamings are worse than your shamings," I suddenly said to Ted Poe. He looked taken aback. "They are worse," he replied. "They're anonymous." "Or even if they're not anonymous, it's such a pile-on they may as well be." "They're brutal," he said.

I almost hated to put this book down - but in the week since I did so, I've thought about it many, many times - and have mentioned and discussed it with most of my friends and family. This one will stick with me for a LONG time.

A fascinating study of contemporary shaming culture, and the toxicity of social media in the hands of gleeful pitchfork-wielding mobs. This is crucial for understanding the erosion of civil discourse in our country and the outsized power of those who get off on bringing others down. Highly recommend.

Book kept me thoroughly engaged throughout. I am already looking at things differently. I am more aware, and see it happening all the time...times I might not have noticed before I read the book. And I will not pile on anymore. Any book that can keep me entertained and also alter my behavior gets 5 stars from me.

I am a fan of Jon Ronson (particularly liked "Them") and always manages to find an unusual and interesting angle of human interest. This book is okay: he does a good job with relatively weak material, but at times you get the sense this could have been a magazine article rather than a whole book

Funny, moving, entertaining, and deep. Basically, an incredibly well-written analysis of the phenomenon of modern-day-lynching in social media on the internet. Laugh out loud funny, disturbing, and moving all at the same time.

Jon Ronson does a good job of cultural reporting. His stream-of-experience style in this book is quite effective as a device for maintaining focus for the reader while providing a taste of the complexity of covering his subject.

This is another fascinating Ronson work, and one that leaves the reader wondering if s/he could be the victim of the online mob -- or a member of it.

Ronson looks at the emergence of online shaming, and then the historical context of public shaming as a punishment. He examines the shaming of some figures in the public eye -- ex-New Jersey governor Jim McGreevey and pop-science writer Jonah Lehrer -- but the truly disturbing stories are those of previously obscure figures like Justine Sacco, who tweeted a bad joke about AIDS and Africa to her 150 followers which spread virally during a daylong trans-Atlantic flight and cost her her job and reputation. Lindsey Stone suffered a similar fate when a jokey photo in arguably poor taste went viral because she had her Facebook settings wrong.

Ronson makes a strong case that shaming is a severe psychological punishment, one that can lead to breakdown and suicide, and also examines how the echo chamber and instant gratification of the Internet can lead people to join in cruel mass shaming without a second thought. I do wish he had spent a bit more time on one aspect he only touches on: the extreme misogyny of much of the shaming of women, with threats to rape and murder, which rarely is a part of male shaming.

It could have been a lot more interesting. Looks into the workings of people and their online presences, as an example of how much power one other person can have over you and your future, or how one 'wrong' or misread action can totally turn your life around… for the worse!

This book wasn't a cross-cultural and historic view on shame and it's dynamics in various cultures, which is then contrasted to the public shamming going on various internet platforms. It is instead, case studies of how public shamming influences people. With hilarious writing, and an incredibly engaging premise, this book is excellent.

Everyone who uses social media of any kind should read this! Robson describes various accounts of social media shaming and delves into the various effects they have had on the recipients and perpetrators alike. It is thoughtful and compassionate yet manages to ask the reader to question their own behaviour and attitudes on social media on a very deep level.

Jon takes several incidents that were really hot topics for a while and shows how the impact of the public shaming really out weighed the transgression. People lost their jobs when other methods of discipline were deserved. I listened to the audiobook, which Jon Ronsom also reads. I enjoyed the book; Italy change my option about comments or actions of others. In many cases, insensitive comments are just that - words. They only have the power that I give to them.

I dislike Facebook and Twitter. But their power over people's lives is unmistakeable. Made me think more heavily about public condemnation and how easy it is to ruin people's lives. The lynch mob is alive and well on social media and nobody is safe from it.

The hardest part about buying one of Mr. Ronson's books is deciding whether to buy the book itself or the audio book. Both versions are always excellent. In this case Mr. Ronson has published a fascinating examination of public shaming in the modern world and what it does to the shamers and sometimes the shamees. I do wish there had been another chapter or two about where society may be headed in this regard, and perhaps some musings on what we can do to try to restore the balance between online "transgressions" and the volume of sometimes damaging derision poured upon the transgressions.

Interesting way to look at this topic. I liked the history and tying it to social media behavior today. I thought it could have been more compelling if edited differently. Seemed to meander a bit and assumed that the reader was aware of the stories referenced.

Such a great read. Absolutely hilarious, but like everything else Ronson writes, it makes you think, and question the way you might have thought about the subject before reading. This book is a must read for anyone who spends any time on social media platforms.

I love everything that Jon Ronson writes, and this book was no exception. He always finds the most obscure topics, which on further examination turn out to perfectly capture the zeitgeist. His writing is funny and honest - very gonzo style for lovers of Hunter S Thompson, and I always come away feeling like I've learned something important about our culture (in this case about the terrifying power of social media to instantly judge, condemn, and shame people for tiptoing outside the line of politically correct behavior).

Very interesting read on what our internet-aged world has become. Bullying and shaming has been around forever, but the internet has made the consequences much more dire. I think I may one of those awful people because I found myself feeling sympathy for very few of these shaming-victims. The internet is forever, man...

As someone interested in the power both of the Internet and the written word, this book was irresistible. Ronson's choice of subject matter was even more tantalizing. If he had been perhaps just a little less clipped in his style and more cohesive in his timelines, a 5-star rating for sure. Highly recommended.

This is really an interesting picture of our society, the history of shaming, and how social media shapes our thinking and culture. If I have one complaint it is that I think the book could have been longer with more examples. Highly recommend.

Honestly, this book works in so many ways, but the way I'm experiencing it now is as a horror story. At one point, Ronson tells one of his subjects something to the extent of "You're living through my worst nightmare."

This kind of thing could happen to any of us, and if you think it can't, it's probably about to happen to you.

Very interesting social psychology approach to the subject of shaming, and an indictment of the role that the internet plays in quick, knee-jerk reactions, to roll of internet trolls, etc. A worthwhile read.

A very interesting book for the times, this age of social media and the forum for pouncing on someone's misstep sometimes cruelly and with a spirit of viciousness. Terrifying at times but also educational and fascinating. I don't have a Twitter account and after reading this book I have absolutely no desire to.

This is such an addicting book! I love the subject matter and Ronson weaves together the tales of real life life altering events as only he can. So totally invested in this book and can't put it down. Recommended.

Absolutely amazing book. It's probably one of the most insightful books for myself that I've read to create a new-found attention to the interactions amongst individuals and myself on various social media platforms. It brings you into awareness of the lack of complex thought and expedition of group mob cognitive dissonance harbored through these social justice "warriors." I will definitely be giving this book as a gift to others in the future.

Awesome cautionary tale about the consequences of revealing your unguarded self in the global social media square. Well balanced, brilliantly researched tome about how social media can be a double-edged sword, about how you don't know which side of the sword you've encountered until you're bleeding.

Very well written book that goes through several well-known stories about people who have been shamed, and some I hadn't heard of before. Hearing the other side of the story really makes you think twice about participating in online shaming, and wonder if what they are being shamed for is really a just cause.

I pondered writing something similar after several of the incidents mentioned in this book. I'm glad I never did, because Ronson laid out exactly what I was thinking more succinctly, artistically and added much more than I ever imagined. A must read book for anyone on social media (i.e. everyone).

This really made me think about the sanctimonious and self-righteous tone people must hear with some of my posts. The anonymity with which people can pile on and stay removed from the devastating effect is a great reminder to challenge ideas, not tear down people.

I have been publicly shamed after a YouTube protest that went terribly wrong. So, when I was told about this book, I purchased it straightaway.

This book made me cry multiple times as it brought up specific, private examples of how shame effects the one who is shamed. It is brutal and dehumanizing. I would not wish it on my worst enemy, regardless of their infraction.

What Jon Ronson does is not only tell us of some specific people's scenarios, but how public shaming has morphed over centuries.

With the new power of social media, this topic that Jon shares with us is timely. Jon presents an opportunity for empathy, the key ingredient to changing the mob mentality we are all capable of and, for many of us, didn't see how our online behavior could be seen as such.

This is happening to not only celebrities, but average citizens. And, it's effect on the livelihood of those inflicted (and those that inflict, and those that stand by silently) are immeasurable. But, there is something we can do and it starts with awareness of what is going on. This book provides this awareness.

Thank you, Jon, for writing this book on this important topic. I hope to meet you in Portland when you visit this Wednesday.
Thank you.

Modern culture is becoming more conformist, more boring and more intellectually shallow than ever, and that's exactly how an alarming number of participants in social media like it, and way too many millions of people don't realize it's happening yet. Ronson writes stories of the first victims of these developments and more should read his stories because if our culture continues to degrade as he lays out, you may become the next victim. Great work.

I appreciate the review of social dynamics in this digital age we're living in. I don't feel as though Ronson answered the question though that remains on readers minds..."so you've been publicly shamed...now what?" He takes a stab at a few instances where individuals have moved past their shamings. But the cases were mostly outliers. I don't have the answers either but I think it could be a good follow up book.

While the topic is relevant and interesting, I feel like this topic could have been summarized in a news article or blog post. It also would have been more impactful if the stories and information was reinforced with psychological/sociological research