SCHENECTADY, N.Y. — In an act of true Internet politeness, the “extremely considerate” Chris Kasey shared a friend’s hard-hitting status on Facebook this morning only after asking for permission in the comment section and receiving approval from the original author.
Julia Mar, who had written the 400-word post on Facebook about the whitewashed casting of the upcoming Hollywood blockbuster Doctor Strange, was “absolutely floored” by Kasey’s kindness.
“It’s just remarkable to have friends like Chris in my life, who go out of their way to make people feel comfortable,” said Mar. “Most people will just share posts like it’s no big deal. Not Chris, though. Every time I go on Twitter, I get a phone call from Chris asking if it’s alright if he re-tweets me.”
“Chris has always been like this, dating back to the Friendster days. He always checked in with me before leaving a testimonial,” said Jared Winters, another current Facebook user who weighed in on the thread. “I commented on Julia’s post, and when Chris replied to mine, he even tagged me at the beginning of his comment. I appreciated that extra touch.”
Facebook post-sharing without permission is a growing issue, with a study by Columbia University’s Social Media Department finding only one in 75 Facebook shares is done so with the permission of the original poster — a study only accounting for Facebook posts specifically made “public.”
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Not everyone on Facebook agrees with Kasey’s actions, though. “People like Chris Kasey asking for permission before sharing a post is what’s wrong with social media,” said David O’Malley, one of the harshest critics of the habit. “I have over 300 friends on Facebook, so people should be thanking me when I give them free exposure, not the other way around!”
“Just because someone posted publicly on social media doesn’t mean they wanted others to see it. I think it’s important to make sure people feel safe, knowing who is sharing their posts,” said Kasey. “It’s a thankless job, but someone out there has to lead by example.”
At press time, Kasey’s shared post had only one like: his own.