Grieving father, Billy Ball, faced online harassment from anti-vaxxers after the sudden death of his six-year-old son.
Ball's son passed away due to a rare cerebral-swelling condition unrelated to the COVID-19 vaccine.
Social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter failed to adequately address the abusive messages and harassment targeting Ball.
Ball argues that social media companies must choose between fostering connection or tolerating and amplifying the worst behavior.
Despite the online torment, Ball found solace in the love and support of friends and family, focusing on remembering his son.
A North Carolina-based journalist and father, Billy Ball, shared his heart-wrenching experience with online harassment after the sudden death of his six-year-old son.
Ball’s child passed away in January following a household accident likely caused by a rare cerebral-swelling condition.
Despite the tragic circumstances, anti-vaxxers on social media targeted the grieving father, falsely attributing his son’s death to the COVID-19 vaccine.
Social Media Becomes a Platform for Harassment
Ball posted his son’s obituary on Twitter to raise funds for the arts program at the boy’s neighborhood school.
Instead of sympathy and support, he faced an onslaught of abusive messages from vaccine opponents.
Thousands of harassing posts flooded his feed, with some individuals even emailing him at work.
Trolls accused Ball of causing his son’s death, while others threatened that his remaining children would be next if they received vaccinations too.
The father tried to reason with his harassers, but his pleas for the conspiracy theorists to leave his family alone only intensified the attacks.
Ball’s friends and family reported some of the most offensive posts to Facebook and Twitter, but the platforms’ response was largely inadequate.
A few users were removed from Twitter, but most cases received no action or tepid form messages.
For the record, the young boy had received the COVID-19 vaccine, but his doctors confirmed that it was irrelevant to his medical condition.
Social Media Companies Face a Choice
As social media platforms continue to amplify misinformation and division, Ball argues that they must choose what kind of space they wish to create.
Is it one for connection, as Facebook promised in a 2020 commercial, or a space where the worst behavior is not only tolerated but amplified?
Companies like Facebook and Twitter need to reassess their content moderation policies and take action against online harassment, particularly in cases like Ball’s, where a bereaved parent is targeted.
For the record, the young boy had received the COVID-19 vaccine, but his doctors confirmed that it was irrelevant to his medical condition.
They compared his tragic death to a lightning strike, emphasizing that it was unrelated to the vaccine.
Healing Amidst Online Torment
In the face of such online cruelty, Ball sought solace in the love and support of friends and family.
He chose to remember his son and their precious time together, rather than dwelling on the unkind words of strangers.
As he grapples with his grief, Ball remains steadfast in his belief that the online harassment he faced was not a reflection of his son, but rather a manifestation of the callous way people treat each other on social media.
