How digital citizenship can transform the internet into a better place for everyone | Canada Voices

For Toronto-based content creator Trésor Gray, the internet isn’t just a platform – it’s his workplace. And like any workplace, he knows its culture can make or break your experience.

For a decade, Gray has cultivated a corner of TikTok that’s all about positivity, laughter and connection. But maintaining that space hasn’t always been easy.

Gray, a 29-year-old songwriter, has been creating short comedic skits since 2013. Over time, he’s amassed a million followers on TikTok. His strategy? Keep things positive.

“I see social media as my job and my workplace, I don’t see it as a personal escape like other people,” he explains. “I’ve made the conscious decision to put my phone down more. I just go on and do what I have to do.”

Gray’s approach is a reminder that while the internet offers connection and creativity, it also harbours negativity.

In 2022, 71 per cent of young Canadians reported seeing online hate in the past 12 months and one in eight saw online content daily that could incite hate or violence. Statistics Canada also found that Canadians who spent less time online had 16 per cent better mental health than those who watched online content for 20 or more hours a week.

These numbers highlight why digital citizenship – how we behave online – matters.

According to Kara Brisson-Boivin, the research director at MediaSmarts – Canada’s centre for digital media literacy and a national charity dedicated to ensuring that everyone has the critical skills to use media in all forms – digital citizenship is defined as the “ability to be online and navigate digital tools in ways that are safe, responsible, and respectfully engaged.”

For Brisson-Boivin, this means both using online tools to enhance our lives as well as engaging respectfully with online spaces.

For Gray, he practises responsible digital citizenship by keeping his channels positive. He says that while it’s easy to get sucked into online negativity, being a good digital citizen is easy: “Just act how you would want people to act to you and talk to you like you would in real life.”

Here are some more tips on how you can be a responsible digital citizen.

Go to the source

One of the simplest ways to practise digital citizenship is to verify information before sharing it. With misinformation spreading easily online, Brisson-Boivin suggests taking a moment to check the credibility of the source.

“Don’t just read a headline or tagline in a social post and then share it,” she says. “Go to the original source, check that source, verify if that source is trusted so that we make sure we’re contributing positively to the online information ecosystem.”

Slow down

Without tone of voice or body language cues, online communication can easily be misinterpreted. Brisson-Boivin advises pausing before reacting to a comment or post. Instead of jumping to the defence, or immediately having an emotional response, try to slow down.

“Taking the time to pause before responding to a comment or a piece of content, and recognizing your own emotions, can help,” says Brisson-Boivin. “When you feel angry or anxious or fearful or sad [after seeing something online], those are the moments where we may need to take a step back, take a pause, and not necessarily react or respond in that particular moment.

Remember there’s someone on the other side of the screen

One of the most important attributes for a responsible digital citizen is the ability to recognize that there’s another human on the opposite end of an online interaction. Brisson-Boivin says that she wants to emphasize to anyone online that we are engaging with other people.

Be an advocate

On top of mitigating negativity, one of the most powerful things you can do to make the internet a positive place is to call out instances of online cruelty or abuse. “It’s about flagging content that is hateful, whether it’s racist, sexist or otherwise and advocate for safer, more inclusive online spaces,” Brisson-Boivin says. This might mean reporting hateful comments online, intervening when there’s a comment pile-on or actively supporting someone on the receiving end of negativity.

Advocating for stronger protections against online hate and more transparent methods of banning or reporting hateful users is something that Brisson-Boivin says is even bigger than how individuals act online.

“Digital citizenship cannot be a panacea for all our online harms. Education is critical but [digital citizenship] is not a one-directional solution and it can’t become a way to saddle individuals with challenges that we’re facing,” she says. “Advocating for more in terms of regulation or platform action is important too.”