These Days, I Feel Like Nitpickers Are Multiplying

It is just a feeling, but
when I look at the world through media, including the internet, there are, to a somewhat exhausting degree, become many more nitpickers.

If you only look at Japanese people through this kind of world, it is disconnected from the image of Japanese people praised from overseas.

It is not just starting now, but recently, nitpicking critics have become particularly noticeable on television programs.
Adding to that is the world of the internet.

Because individuals can speak freely on the internet, it is overflowing with a mix of good and bad opinions and criticisms.
There are still many that are nearly anonymous.
It is also a world where impersonation is possible.
The side receiving the information does not really remember which media they got the information from.

In this flood of information, I think a nitpicking society is spreading overall. People who nitpick irresponsibly are increasing.

In particular, this trend on the internet seems likely to become even more extreme.
To avoid being swayed by such annoying information, it is important to improve media literacy, have your own thoughts and beliefs, and not let your judgment axis waver.

Now, to enter the main topic, if you ask who does the nitpicking, it is humans.
I do not know the situation of nitpicking overseas, but
I think Japanese people have a particularly strong habit of caring about others. It might be a characteristic of an island nation.

I still have an intense experience from my childhood remaining in my head. When I was a child, I lived right in the middle of a village society. Word of mouth, or rumors, spread in an instant. Good stories spread too, but other people's business spreads in an instant.

One day in my upper elementary school years, the first vending machine in the farming village was installed a few hundred meters from my parents' house. It was not for drinks, but a machine for instant noodles. Giving in to the novelty, I ate tempura udon. Since it was a particularly conspicuous place, I ate it trying not to stand out next to the machine.

When I returned home satisfied with the tempura udon, my mother already knew. I have never realized the speed and depth of rural word-of-mouth power as much as I did at this time.
It is an episode I still cannot forget.

Was it that my eating tempura udon was so noticeable? Did they think it was fodder for conversation? I still do not know the truth.

Village society is not a feature unique to Japan. It is a common story in Vietnam and other emerging countries as well.
There is definitely a part where this human-specific love of gossip is at the root and leads to nitpicking.

On the other hand, I have been thinking lately that there might be something unique to Japan. Japanese people do not really say their true intentions.
There is an invisible world of communication called 'seken' (society) and 'ma' (space/timing). Even in business, there is a tacit understanding.

I will try to classify the people who nitpick
in my own way.

First, people who attack with malice and hostility.
Finding fault is also in this category. There is also the expression 'picking at the corners of a tiered food box'.
These people are still easier to identify in the analog world. What is troublesome is the world of the internet and SNS.
If it goes as far as slander, it could potentially lead to crime.

Humans have an instinctive nature to mount.
It is an instinct to want to stand in a superior position to others.
On the internet, it is easy for rational restraint to be lost. It is also used as a place to vent stress.
There are also many people who pull others down out of jealousy.
The internet is the biggest hotbed for the increase in nitpicking.

Actually, there are many reserve nitpickers.
There is also nitpicking that comes from ignorance.
When you encounter nitpicking from an ignorant person, the conversation goes astray and becomes long. Explaining it is also tiring.

Next are people who take what others say at face value.
This means there is a possibility of being swayed by others and nitpicking.
They can be called the conformist type.

Another type is people who do not think about things that they would understand if they thought about them.
It is similar to the previous one, but the essence is different.

In Japan today, there is a trend where people take no responsibility and it feels like whoever makes the most critical comments wins.
That is bad enough for adults, but it is not good for children's education.

We live in an era where rumors fly around more and more on the internet and elsewhere.
Each individual needs to improve their media literacy and develop the ability to think for themselves.
How should one deal with encountering nitpicking?
There are various ways to think about it: ignore it, don't let it bother you, don't look at it, don't listen to it...
These approaches feel passive and like ways to avoid the issue.

On the other hand, no matter what is said or written to my face, I remain steadfast.
I am always conscious of the latter approach.

First and foremost, I believe it is important for adults to acquire solid media literacy and become role models for children.

That is all.