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Altounian, Elizabeth
Professor Vana DerOhanessian
English 114A
29 October 2014
Ebola: Is it Socially Accepted?
Social media is a compilation of websites and applications that enable users to create and
share content or to participate in social networking. Using social media on a daily basis has
become the status quo in the lives of average Americans. Many consider the nature of social
media users as people who ignorantly pass judgment. When traditional values in our culture
clash with social media, new norms evolve based on opinions stated in comment sections and
status updates. Based on trending subjects and personalities, the public adapts to what is
considered most popular or appealing. Although many may disagree, social media is a large
factor in evaluating societal norms because of the constant sharing and spreading of opinion and
judgment. Since the discovery of Ebola-infected people in America, many popular social
networking sites, such as Twitter, have been mocking the actual severity of this illness without
taking into consideration that these outbursts may lead to criminal charges or even the exposure
of this deadly virus.
When it comes to Ebola, the younger generation believes that making jokes about it is
acceptable. In other words, social media has made Ebola the laughing stock of our generation.
Moreover, the main reason people ridicule and mock a disease new to the American public is
because of the lack of information provided to the public about this deadly illness. Therefore our
ignorance drives our judgment. The symptoms of this disease are so severe, they can lead to
death; it has put many people in confinement and has killed many who have been exposed to the

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disease. An example that demonstrates someone taking this too lightly would be a tweet that
states, If I get Ebola I know who Im sneezing on first (@Girlfession). When the person
tweeting states If I get Ebola, it implies that the person running this account is not thinking
about what this disease will do to them but thinking about what they can do to people they dont
approve of. Threatening to spread the Ebola virus reveals the blatant ignorance of certain people
in our society who are so quick to stoop to ridiculous insults just to crack a joke. Another
example would be the post on Twitter using the very famous film Mean Girls as a joke implying
that the main character Lindsey Lohan plays is the person who actually brought Ebola to the
states. A picture posted with Lindsey Lohans character captioned, We all know who really
brought Ebola from Africa and into the USA... implies her character is the one who brought the
disease because she is from Africa (@TedOfficialPage). Using Mean Girls as the source of this
joke appeals to a much broader audience because everyone, regardless if they have seen the
movie or not, can relate to this pop-culture reference due to the popularity of this film. The more
popular a film is, the quicker these jokes (or memes) spread. The more common a joke becomes,
the more socially acceptable it seems to make fun of a deadly disease.
Younger generations who grew up on social media sites might not understand the
severity of their actions regarding the constant ridiculing of Ebola. There have been a few cases
of criminal threats charged against people who thought it would be a good idea to joke about
having the Ebola disease. NBC news reported on October 14th that a passenger on a metro bus in
the Lincoln Heights area claimed he had Ebola and authorities opened a criminal threat
investigation against him. Apparently, a man in a surgical mask told a bus driver, You better
not mess with me because I have Ebola, before getting off the bus (NBC). What if the many
off-color jokes about this disease inspired this particular man to take the joke even further? This

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mans outburst spurned authorities to open an investigation into the matter merely because he
made a joke he thought was socially accepted by society. This minor joke he thought was okay
caused the whole bus to be put under lockdown until they were sure no one was infected.
Another similar incident occurred on an airline involving a man who made a joke about having
Ebola before he was escorted off the plane. Four officials in blue plastic hazmat suits boarded
U.S. Airways Flight 845 to retrieve him after it landed in Punta Cana in the Dominican
Republic (KTLA5). This man making the joke on an airplane caused a panic because the
disease was originally carried over by a man visiting his family in Texas from Africa. The jokes
that were being made were probably meant to be harmless but because of the dangers of this
particular disease, serious actions were taken against the people who made the jokes.
Humor is a way for people to communicate their fears to each other in order to avoid a
heavy heart. But there comes a point where these jokes can be abused. There are those people
who might disagree with the points being made in this paper, claiming that citizens have freedom
of speech. Freedom of speech does give people right to say what they wish but there are people
who abuse this right. Freedom of Speech, Right, as stated in the 1st and 14th Amendments to
the Constitution of the United States, to express information, ideas, and opinions free of
government restrictions based on content (Britannica). People will argue that they can say what
they wish without receiving any consequences just how people on social media websites do, like
Twitter. Although this may be true, the hypothetical fine print of the amendment is limited due
to the fact that it is based on content. People have the wrong understanding of the amendment,
therefore using this amendment as a safety net to fall back on as an excuse.
Social media can alter the way most people view certain things in society. The way we
are influenced by what we see should not change the way we act in public. Jokes such as the

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Ebola disease being made on Twitter and in public have two completely different consequences.
Society does have the right to freedom of speech, yes, but it all depends on how one puts it to
use. With a disease so deadly, the government has the societys safety in mind. This is why such
severe actions are being taken to make sure it does not spread and infect more people than it
already has.

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Works Cited
Girlfessions (Girlfessions). if I get Ebola I know who Im sneezing on first. Tweet.
TED (TedOfficialPage). we all know who really brought Ebola from Africa and into the
USA 04 October 2014, 2:00 p.m. Tweet.
Knight, Nerissa, and CNN WIRE. "Man Escorted Off Plane by Men in Hazmat Suits After Ebola
Scare on US Airways Flight." KTLA 5. N.p., 9 Oct. 2014. Web. 28 Oct. 2014.
Kandel, Jason, and Gadi Schwartz. "Ebola Scare Prompts Criminal Threat Investigation." NBC
Southern California. N.p., 14 Oct. 2014. Web. 28 Oct. 2014.
"Freedom of Speech." Encyclopedia Britannica. CSUN Library, 9 Oct. 2013. Web. 28 Oct.
2014.

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