Yik Yak is a relatively new social media platform that allows users to post their opinions anonymously and “up-vote” or “down-vote” posts they like or dislike. The app has spread to colleges across the country and allows students to express their feelings, which can be funny as well as brutally honest.
The Yik Yak website promotes the use of the app with a positive spin on its features.
“Join the conversation. Control what’s hot. Peek into other places. Earn Yakarma points,” the site advertises.
Many of its users also praise the app.
“Feed a man a yak and he’ll laugh once. Teach a man to yak and he’ll procrastinate for the rest of his life,” one commenter posted on Oct. 16.
Yik Yak has been heavily promoted on the Hopkins Homewood campus via public message boards and flyers posted in public spaces like dorm hallways and bathrooms.
The Yik Yak community in Baltimore is mostly populated by Hopkins, Loyola and Towson students, as well as students that attend Notre Dame of Maryland University. The rivalry that is most prominently seen between Hopkins and Loyola students is a main feature of the local Yik Yak forum.
“Riding the Blue Jay shuttle and a couple of drunk Loyola guys flag it down and ask if they can be taken back to Loyola,” one Hopkins student posted on Oct. 11. “Driver says yes I’ll be back, rolls up the window and tells us ‘I’m not going back.’”
“I’m from Loyola and this is hilarious,” another student commented underneath.
Many Hopkins students appreciate the app for its humorous and lighthearted posts, as well as the freedom it provides. Freshman Alberto Muniz said that he is a fan because it protects the privacy of posters.
“I love Yik Yak because it’s good for people to be able to express their opinions without an identity attached. No matter who you are, you have the freedom to express yourself,” Muniz said.
Although freshman John Shin does not have the Yik Yak app installed on his phone, he also praised the forum’s comical posts.
“I’ve heard that it’s a good platform because you can express your opinions anonymously, and it’s really funny,” Shin said.
Although students find many Yaks entertaining, the app is also subject to criticism among the student body. The same anonymity that protects posters’ privacy also allows certain users to anonymously bully others without facing consequences. For example, some find the rivalry between Hopkins, Loyola and Towson that manifests itself in Yak posts to be hurtful, demeaning and insulting.
“Made Easy Mac... Got chemistry degree from Towson,” one poster commented on Oct. 20.
Freshman David Helfer expressed his mixed opinion on the nature of Yik Yak.
“I think it’s a great way for people to post things they would only say anonymously,” Helfer said. “I’ve heard that it’s funny, although it has obvious potential to be mean and crude.”
Helfer also added that this potential has stopped him from downloading the app onto his phone.
Although he praised the freedom the forum gives students, freshman Alberto Muniz also commented on the disadvantages of the app.
“It is very open to bullying and shaming. It’s anonymous, so there are virtually no repercussions,” Muniz explained.
Freshman Rachel Shavel had similar opinions on the negative potential of Yik Yak.
“It creates a community of people who don’t feel accountable for what they say,” Shavel said.
Freshman Abby Annear, who enjoys reading and posting on Yik Yak, also acknowledges the danger of the app due to its lack of credibility.
“Although Yik Yak provides a great way to understand the culture and pulse of a school or community, I personally believe that it unintentionally facilitates anonymous bullying,” Annear said. “[This] can be even more painful for victims to cope with than conventional bullying. Yik Yak enables individuals to humiliate others, which users can support with their up-votes, in a prominent public setting. Since you can’t directly identify those involved, I can only imagine how defenseless and exposed you would feel if it seemed like all your peers were ganging up on you.”
Yik Yak has been deemed inappropriate by so many communities that the Yik Yak website now offers a “Geofence Request” that allows users to block Yik Yak from being opened in some areas. Through Geofencing, kids in many elementary, middle or high schools won’t be able to view potentially damaging Yaks.
A serious problem occurred on the Penn State University Yik Yak forum when one anonymous poster threatened to murder students at their school.
“I am going to kill everyone in penn state main on monday. i got 5 beta mags of ar 15 and shoot everyone in the hub at 12:00. this is a warning,” read the post.
The Penn State police determined the poster’s identity; they arrested a 20-year-old Penn State student on Oct. 12 for the Yak, which he said was a “prank,” according to a philly.com article on the incident.
Overall, although users feel that the app has both negative and positive attributes, it remains popular on the Hopkins campus.
appreciate the app for its humorous and lighthearted posts, as well as the freedom it provides. Freshman Alberto Muniz said that he is a fan because it protects the privacy of posters.
“I love Yik Yak because it’s good for people to be able to express their opinions without an identity attached. No matter who you are, you have the freedom to express yourself,” Muniz said.
Although freshman John Shin does not have the Yik Yak app installed on his phone, he also praised the forum’s comical posts.
“I’ve heard that it’s a good platform because you can express your opinions anonymously, and it’s really funny,” Shin said.
Although students find many Yaks entertaining, the app is also subject to criticism among the student body. The same anonymity that protects posters’ privacy also allows certain users to anonymously bully others without facing consequences. For example, some find the rivalry between Hopkins, Loyola and Towson that manifests itself in Yak posts to be hurtful, demeaning and insulting.
“Made Easy Mac... Got chemistry degree from Towson,” one poster commented on Oct. 20.
Freshman David Helfer expressed his mixed opinion on the nature of Yik Yak.
“I think it’s a great way for people to post things they would only say anonymously,” Helfer said. “I’ve heard that it’s funny, although it has obvious potential to be mean and crude.”
Helfer also added that this potential has stopped him from downloading the app onto his phone.
Although he praised the freedom the forum gives students, freshman Alberto Muniz also commented on the disadvantages of the app.
“It is very open to bullying and shaming. It’s anonymous, so there are virtually no repercussions,” Muniz explained.
Freshman Rachel Shavel had similar opinions on the negative potential of Yik Yak.
“It creates a community of people who don’t feel accountable for what they say,” Shavel said.
Freshman Abby Annear, who enjoys reading and posting on Yik Yak, also acknowledges the danger of the app due to its lack of credibility.
“Although Yik Yak provides a great way to understand the culture and pulse of a school or community, I personally believe that it unintentionally facilitates anonymous bullying,” Annear said. “[This] can be even more painful for victims to cope with than conventional bullying. Yik Yak enables individuals to humiliate others, which users can support with their up-votes, in a prominent public setting. Since you can’t directly identify those involved, I can only imagine how defenseless and exposed you would feel if it seemed like all your peers were ganging up on you.”
Yik Yak has been deemed inappropriate by so many communities that the Yik Yak website now offers a “Geofence Request” that allows users to block Yik Yak from being opened in some areas. Through Geofencing, kids in many elementary, middle or high schools won’t be able to view potentially damaging Yaks.
A serious problem occurred on the Penn State University Yik Yak forum when one anonymous poster threatened to murder students at their school.
“I am going to kill everyone in penn state main on monday. i got 5 beta mags of ar 15 and shoot everyone in the hub at 12:00. this is a warning,” read the post.
The Penn State police determined the poster’s identity; they arrested a 20-year-old Penn State student on Oct. 12 for the Yak, which he said was a “prank,” according to a philly.com article on the incident.
Overall, although users feel that the app has both negative and positive attributes, it remains popular on the Hopkins campus.
