Actress Ariel Winter Has a Message for Social Media Shamers

It’s never been easy being a teenager. I spoke with “Modern Family” actress Ariel Winter to discuss the double-edged sword that is social media. The feature was printed in Mediaplanet’s 2017 “Teen Health and Safety” issue, distributed within USA Today and at 50+ college campuses across the country.

Ariel Winter photographed by Danielle Levitt.

The angst and fury of young people has found a new, dangerous outlet on social media. From sexual harassment to menacing physical threats, platforms like Instagram and Facebook have become breeding grounds for hate speech.

“While I think that social media is amazing, it has also turned into a place where people can act really dark and negative towards each other,” says the 18-year-old actress who started acting at age 4, and later earned a role on the Emmy-winning comedy Modern Family at 11. 

“I started using social media when I was 11, when I had just started my first show, and it quickly had an impact on my confidence.”

According to a recent survey by Cyberbulling Research Center, 43 percent of high school students report experiencing cyberbullying during their lifetime.

“As soon as I started posting, everyone hated on everything I shared and I was so devastated by it,” the actress recalls. “It made me want to change what I looked like and the things I said.”

The data shows that cyberbulling is much worse for girls. Adolescent girls are more likely to have experienced cyberbullying in their lifetime; 40.6 percent compared to 28.2 percent.

“One day I realized that regardless of what I do, people are going to have an opinion about me whether it be negative or positive, so I learned to be happy with myself and my choices and the way I look.”

Winter has an important message for the anonymous commentators that try to bring her down online.

“You’re not going to get the satisfaction you seek from me,” she laughs. “You can write something negative on my posts; you’re not going to get a response. If you don’t like me, unfollow me.”

Now Winter uses her social media platforms to promote positivity, and urges her fans and followers to do the same.

“It’s important to be transparent on social media,” she advocates. “Be comfortable enough in your own skin to be yourself. I try to spend my time teaching people how to use social media positively; how to do something nice for somebody.”

Winter’s advice for young people struggling with being themselves on-or-offline?

“Don’t pay them any mind. The people who bully others are insecure in themselves and are probably going through something negative in their own lives.”