Corrosive comments killing social media – is it time to switch them off?

If you looked on social media this week you’d assume that the whole of Kirkcaldy was up in arms at the royal visit.

Every story or update posted on a host of Facebook pages - including the Fife Free Press - got swamped with the same negativity. It went from derogatory to defamatory to the downright sick, and it got to the point several pages, including Fife Council’s own social media platform, actually turned off comments completely.

Welcome to social media in 2025 - a place where the ‘social’ element has been trampled into the ground.

I’m no royalist. In fact last week was the first royal visit I’ve ever covered in 45-plus years in this job, and I’d have been more than happy to get to retirement with a neat zero against that column.

But I found myself going back time and again to mute, and then delete in a bid to stem the never-ending river of corrosive cynicism. I reckon King Canute - and he probably wasn’t your king either - had mair luck.

There was a time when a gallery of photos from an event would have got nothing more than stacks of “Julie, check out page seven, you’re in it” messages as folk spotted familiar faces and shared the news.

Now, even they are being swamped by this strange, unfathomable desire to state your absolute opposition, or even loathing, to whatever the subject matter happens to be. I genuinely don’t get it.

I have zero interest in Oasis, but can think of a million better things to do than vent my spleen on social media about a gig I’m not going to - far less trading snarky comments with some random or post an emoji of someone throwing up at the mention of Liam Gallagher’s name.

Facebook engagement has become bitter, twisted, soor-faced and crabbit, and it’s getting worse.

There is clear evidence people are not even reading the story and just diving straight into the comments - and all it takes is an opposite view to fan the flames, and then skewer what might have been an interesting thread and it flies downhill faster than an out of control novice skier who ends up on a black run.

Step away from social media for a minute and look at the actual visit. The crowds were decent, folk were out hours before hand to get a spot, and everyone enjoyed the occasion.

The two old fellas who draped their ‘Not My King’ banner over the Adam Smith Theatre’s signage at least exercised their right to protest in person, just as the crowd exercised its right to pretty much ignore ‘em. I’ve more respect for them than the keyboard moaners.

But here’s the clincher. For every ‘Not My King’ comment posted, the page views for each article and photog gallery were tenfold greater, and the ’likes’ and those strange wee heart shaped emojis also heavily outnumbered them. Our web traffic soared - I’m talking tens of thousands of views and the numbers are still ticking over.

Maybe we need to stop getting sucked into those pointless rammies on Facebook that go nowhere, solve nothing and soak up precious seconds of our lives. Time you will never, ever get back …