Black and White Rainbows
The house landed with a thud. She slowly picked herself up from the bed, visibly shaken. You would too if a tornado had picked you up like a dog’s chew, tossed you back and forth, and then violently launched you to the other side of reality. Slowly, she walked to the front door, terrier in hand. As she turned the knob and pulled back the wooden door, a new Techni-color reality which Dorothy could have never imagined while in her previous black and white paradigm emerged. While this gripping scene from the Wizard of Oz was certainly not the first use of color in motion picture films, it will forever remain one of the most enrapturing moments in cinematic history for the way in which it delivered such an incredible depth of emotion likely never before.
It’s such an intriguing effect that color has upon our souls, and in it we find a dynamic metaphor for the way in which we orchestrate human dialogue regarding controversial topics. Dorothy’s transition from Kansas to Oz reveals to us the way in which black and white film, while competent at illustrating shapes, shades, and movement, quite literally paled in comparison to the powerful effect which Oz’s exquisite golds, luscious greens, and vibrant blues had upon Dorothy and, simultaneously, the movie viewers. While time has seen the transition from black and white to color in the realm of cinematic technology, it is unfortunate how culture has metaphorically reversed that trend. With the rise of social media in our lives, it feels as if we are approaching the final seconds of its death hold on our human civility and propriety. In his book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, author Lyman Frank Baum describes the Dorothy’s Kansas home as a place where “the sun had baked the plowed land into a gray mass”, “the same gray color” was everywhere, and “even the grass was not green.” Substitute “Kansas” with “social media culture” and you’ll see the sad state of their similarities.
In our black and white land of social media dialogue, while we are more capable of shouting our thoughts louder and further than ever before, their depth is tragically lacking. This monochromatic poison is slowly weakening our ability to communicate about controversial topics in a productive and healthy way. Character limits and emojis have become the caps upon the most colorful layers of what makes us human. To illustrate my point, imagine being tasked with illustrating a rainbow using nothing but different shades of gray markers. It would be impossible! When forced to communicate the depth which color brings using only black and white, emotional and intellectual constipation is inevitable (yes, I just said “emotional and intellectual constipation”). The repeatedly failed attempts to communicate a rainbow with only black and white will certainly leave both the artist and observer in a state of tense frustration.
“Character limits and emojis have become the caps upon the most colorful layers of what makes us human. ”
In our current epoch of unlimited access to information, we are experiencing first hand the destructive result of what happens when the rainbows of human thought and emotion are forced to be described through social media’s gray scale spectrum. Frustration results from being misunderstood, which leads to violent and aggressive words being typed in a way that likely wouldn’t be if they were spoken audibly, and our souls are paying the price. Conversations regarding contentious and disputed topics have been, are, and always will be unavoidable, yet now it appears many of these conversations are happening within a human experience vacuum, leaving us without the safety and security which in-person connection once provided to us. The nuclear power of our social media platforms appears to be destabilizing us at our very core; our humanity depends upon addressing this clear and present danger.
With the problem laid clearly before us, it becomes clear that the solution will require nothing less than the intentional reinsertion of color into our crucial dialogues. To this point, I must clarify that I do not believe the solution is a complete ban on all social media for all people (although I highly recommend occasional hiatuses). In the same way that black and white films are still cherished for the value that they bring to cinema, so social media holds unheard of potential for increased potency in our ability to connect with others. So since elimination will not suffice, the return of vibrancy to our most important conversations will only come through an intentional modification of the way in which we utilize the tool of social media. This is where the strength of our leadership is drawn into play. While bad leaders utilize social media in a way that draws people into a destructive reality characterized by division, hostility, and violence, good leaders harness social media to inspire others toward an optimal reality of dialogue, unity, and connection. In what ways can we as leaders influence this trend toward a more optimal reality of connection and unity? Well, if we return to our metaphor of the wonderful land of Oz, you may recall that the greatest threat Dorothy and her fellow sojourners faced was the wicked witch. While we as leaders may not be overly concerned with witches that fly on brooms and command legions of flying monkeys, there are three “whiches” that we do need to address.
“While bad leaders utilize social media in a way that draws people into a destructive reality characterized by division, hostility, and violence, good leaders harness social media to inspire others toward an optimal reality of dialogue, unity, and connection.”
WHICH Tone
The first “which” we must address is understanding which tone we should employ in our dialogue. One definition of tone is “a style or manner of expression in speaking or writing”. Ironically, another definition of tone is “the effect in painting of light and shade together with color”, reinforcing our underlying connection to the power of color in our controversial conversations. Often times we aren’t even aware of the negative affect our tone has upon those who read our posts on social media, failing to recognize the color we lack while we remain stuck in the gray mass, the place where even the grass is not green. We think we are communicating capitally but in reality, our words are interpreted as hostile and divisive, whether we intend them to be or not. As I have observed different tones of voice used in controversial social media conversations, I have identified two different tones should be avoided:
SARCASM
“I’m so excited ______________ was just elected. I’ve been waiting for the world to end for a while now.”
Sarcastic posts like this hypothetical example might come off as funny to some and may make you feel good in the moment but good leaders are more focused on using their words to unite their people and bring about a desired outcome than self-gratification and appeasing a certain group at the expense of another.
EXAGGERATION
“No one from the _____________ party has ever done this world ANY good! All they want to do is destroy our country!”
Just like sarcasm, exaggeration tends to invigorate one group of people while offending another. The danger of exaggeration is that it is typically a flashing red DANGER light indicating your opinion has started to digress from the yellow brick road toward false conclusions fabricated from inaccurate paradigms. Avoiding exaggeration is how good leaders keep their people on the yellow brick road of healthy human dialogue.
I will clarify that using a healthy tone doesn’t inherently mean the oppression of your opinion or conviction. Rather it is a modification of our approach to the subject in order to create emotional safety for those involved in the discussion. Leaders must learn to tackle the challenging issues of our time with mutual strength and grace by simultaneously not straying from communicating what must be said while also employing a tone that fosters a spirit of unity and growth.
WHICH Words
No, this section is not a justification for using “colorful” language in your use of social media. Instead, it is a call to carefully guard against words which unnecessarily cause division. While there might be a word you would like to use that would give full weight to the negative emotions you feel (i.e. “idiot”, “nincompoop”, “cotton-headed-ninny-muggin”), understand that using charged words might allow you to blow your opinion as loud as you want across a dry and lifeless social media landscape but they will keep you from stepping into the colorful depth of rich, human dialogue. Instead of using emotionally charged words that gratify yourself, consider using more neutral words like “questionable” instead of “hair-brained”, or “I disagree with their beliefs” vs. “They’re all idiots”. Both communicate the important facts but the latter options maintain greater emotional safety encourages connection and not defensiveness.
One last point: absolutely no name-calling. It is never appropriate to call anyone derogatory names, especially if you call yourself a leader. Period.
“Leaders must learn to tackle the challenging issues of our time with mutual strength and grace by simultaneously not straying from communicating what must be said while also employing a tone that fosters a spirit of unity and growth.”
WHICH Platform.
Last but far from least, you must choose which platform to utilize for engaging in dialogue. In making this choice, first identify your ideal outcome (hopefully it is something along the lines of dialogue, unity, and connection). Then ask yourself if the platform, whether Facebook, Twitter, MeWe, face to face, etc., is likely to produce that outcome. Once you’ve identified which platform you believe will give the best chance of achieving your desired outcome, use that platform. You will still face the other two Which’s even in one-on-one dialogue so you must still be intentional about which tone and words you use on that platform. With this point in mind, never forget that you always have the choice to refrain from dialoguing on any form of social media regarding a certain issue. I’ve semi-recently made the choice to not post anything political on my social media because I’ve found little success with productive dialogue there. This is a decision we must each make for ourselves.
Choosing Color
Sometimes it feels like our world is nothing but a colorless wasteland of hostility, anger, and opposition. Social media has great power which, if left unchecked, can easily leave us trapped in a less than optimal black and white reality. Dorothy had the choice of whether or not to remain inside the comfort of black and white, which was all she had known until that point, or to step out into the unknown world of color, mystery, and discovery. By intentionally choosing WHICH tone, WHICH words, and WHICH platform to use in our dialogue, we can lead those around us and rebuild the bonds that bind us by boldly stepping into the colorful new world of Oz. The choice between empty fields of dry gray mass and the glimmering yellow brick road is ours alone to make.