Bobby Madley’s plight symptomatic of social media shame culture | Max Rushden


The former Premier League referee’s career was finished by one moment and this absence of forgiveness is likely to be repeated

In an emotional blog post on New Year’s Eve, the former Premier League referee Bobby Madley detailed how his career was finished in one moment 18 months ago. “Please don’t think bad of me. I’m a human being who made one mistake, one that many many people have done themselves and not lost everything for.”

It is a story that only fits in the 2010s – one of smartphones, social media pile-ons and a complete absence of forgiveness – one that highlights the disproportionality between someone’s mistake and the impact on their lives. It couldn’t really have happened before the last decade, but will almost certainly repeat itself in this one.

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