Why are we so quick to believe the gossip we hear?
When Sloane Hopkins hugged David Gaffin goodbye as he left for his semester abroad in England, she jokingly promised she would spread ridiculous rumors about him while he was gone. David found this hilarious, and quickly granted his approval for the scheme. Sloane spread the first rumor at about 4 PM one Monday: David has anger problems. Sloane, myself, and a friend were the only people in on this fake rumor and we all knew it was a joke. But what began as a lighthearted joke quickly became a social experiment: how fast could we get gossip that isn't even real to spread and mutate on Covenant’s campus?
By 4:30, tea was brewing at the library. We told a few people that David had anger problems to jumpstart the rumor. We added that he had recently been imprisoned for an “unknown reason.” We didn’t expect anyone to believe the wild rumors but to my surprise, people did.
Within minutes the library was buzzing. One person was panicking while googling prisons in the Oxford area in an attempt to figure out which one David was in. Another was requesting info from every prison in the area to figure out the reason for his arrest. Within half an hour, the news had spread internationally! One individual overheard the rumor in the library, texted a friend, who texted David’s girlfriend in France. While chaos moved across campus and oceans, I sat and watched, texting David updates regularly.
By dinner, I felt like the most popular person on campus. People who had never bothered talking to me before were suddenly appearing at my table with questions, speculation, panic and concern.
“I heard David was arrested because he was working with the British mafia or something like that.” said one boy.
“I heard he just had false identification so they arrested him.” exclaimed another.
There was also talk about starting a Go Fund Me to get him out of jail before Christmas. As people left my table and got back to dinner with their friends, I noticed them huddling around their tables to do what I presumed was to talk about David.
Although I can’t claim to know how many people spread and exaggerated the David rumors knowing it was a prank, the implications speak for themselves. Despite knowing David’s character, many Covenant students believed what they heard even though it was outrageous in nature. Nobody should have any reason to believe that David has anger problems and he was put in prison, especially those who know him personally. I ask again, Why are we so quick to believe the gossip we hear? Are we bored and looking for excitement? Do we assume the worst of others? Does gossip make us feel better about ourselves?
The problem with gossip is that we don’t keep it to ourselves, We hear it and spread it. Gossip offers a twisted sense of connection. People believe it is harmless, thinking “I am just telling a few people, they won't tell anyone.” As seen in my mini social experiment, this is not the case!
Another problem with gossip is that no one fact checks or looks for the original source of the information. Only one person came up to me at dinner and (in my opinion) responded maturely. This person was determined to get to the bottom of things. He requested the source of the information and the details because he didn’t want rumors to spread further.
If you haven't come up with any applications based on this article, I would like to suggest something simple: stop gossiping, get a hobby, and read your Bible. I suspect we all know what the Bible says about gossip but in case you need a refresher, go read Proverbs 11:13 or Ephesians 4:29. Do you want to be a person who betrays trust, pokes into everyone's business and tears people down? Is this what you want for this campus? I hope you will consider the story of David’s wild European adventures a lesson that what you say matters and that people are guaranteed to hear it.