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Original poster

Can someone explain virtue signalling to me?

76 replies

Norfolklassie · 18/02/2018 12:04

Long time lurker of the feminism threads and peaked some time ago. I don’t contribute as I don’t yet feel confident enough, especially with terminology.

Could anyone explain simply to me what is virtue signalling - I think I understand it, as have looked around some websites but I’m unable to make the distinction between when someone is supporting a cause or virtue signalling.

OP posts:

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MephistophelesApprentice · 19/02/2018 09:59

Talking about future signalling is a great litmus test. The people who want to get on with their lives can instantly draw to mind a dozen examples. The ones enacting actual positive behaviours quietly don't say anything at all. And others become defensive around the whole concept, as they feel the foundations of their palatial virtue shifting in the sands of their own vanity.

BertrandRussell · 19/02/2018 10:47

Is there a term for "reverse virtue signalling"? Like the sort of mealy mouthed response to Lily Allen's outrage about Grenfell saying it can't be genuine because she didn't fill her apartment with homeless people? Or you can't be a socialist unless you live on minimum wage?

BahHumbygge · 19/02/2018 10:49

Twat-signalling?

MephistophelesApprentice · 19/02/2018 10:55

Well, performing enhanced humility or exaggerated sincerity would be a signalling of virtue of its own...

BlindYeo · 19/02/2018 10:57

What CritEqual said.

Virtue signalling is a bit like name-dropping. You're just advertising your superior moral stance rather than your connections.

Childrenofthestones · 19/02/2018 11:46

The best case of virtue signalling I have come across personally was a couple of years ago reading on a forum about race
when a woman wrote that she was so unaware of a person's colour she could have a conversation with somebody face to face and if you had asked her later whether they were black or white she couldn't have said.🤔

BertrandRussell · 19/02/2018 12:49

“a woman wrote that she was so unaware of a person's colour she could have a conversation with somebody face to face and if you had asked her later whether they were black or white she couldn't have said”

Is that virtue signaling? I would have called it (in my virtue signally way) racial insensitivity. Usually when people say they don’t “see colour” they turn out to be racists.

smithsinarazz · 19/02/2018 16:00

There's a variant which I particularly dislike called "I Hate Baddies More than You". You post something on facebook saying, in effect, "Here is a baddie. I hate him/ her. I'd like to punch him." Then someone else pops up and says "Punching's too good for him. I'd like to stick pins in his eyes" or "I'd like him to burn in everlasting flames". Soon you've got a whole lynch mob baying for the person's blood, and if wet liberals pop up and say "Hang on a bit, sticking pins into people's eyes isn't very nice" people say "Oh, so you're on his side, are you?"

BertrandRussell · 19/02/2018 16:49

Oh, God, yes, smiths- that’s common on here isn’t it? And poor Mary Beard has just suffered a variant of that on Twitter - “I know this is a very bad thing, but we really need to think about how and why this bad thing happened” “ Oh, so you think there are excuses for the people who did the bad thing, do you? I think they should rot in hell. And if you don’t agree then you must think the bad thing isn’t very bad”

Trills · 19/02/2018 22:03

Is there a term for "reverse virtue signalling"?

Most of the time when I see the phrase used, it's by people doing this.

RedToothBrush · 20/02/2018 00:15

Is there a term for "reverse virtue signalling"?

Yes. He's called Donald Trump.

GinnyLovesGin · 20/02/2018 00:27

Is it like that bit in The Office when Tim puts Gareth’s stapler in the jelly and when Gareth scoops away the jelly to remove the stapler David Brent tells him he should eat the jelly because it’s “wasting food” then he looks directly at the camera and says “which I hate!”

BonnieF · 20/02/2018 00:38

‘Virtue signalling’ means making a public display of showing superficial support for a cause or person, while having no intention of making any genuine sacrifice of your own time or money to actually do anything useful for said cause. Virtue signalling doesn’t cost you anything.

Intention is key. If your intention is to make yourself look good in they eyes of others, you are virtue signalling. If you give up your evenings or weekend to help out at, for example, a homeless shelter you aren’t.

Oldbrook · 20/02/2018 01:33

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

thebewilderness · 20/02/2018 01:56

I really enjoy the threads like this where we talk about the various ways in which we are manipulated. It is a real learning experience an I thank you all for it.

DioneTheDiabolist · 20/02/2018 08:58

RedToothBrush.

Cuckwho · 20/02/2018 10:46

Bonnie F put it well but I'd add showing support for an issue without understanding and making any effort to understand it. The recent furore over animal sentience was an example. Lily Allen has been mentioned previously and is someone that repeatedly does this. I have someone in my family that posts repeated right on things that that don't follow. Calling for a boycott of Amazon and Murdoch at the same time as having their Christmas list on Amazon and taking contract work from News International.

BertrandRussell · 20/02/2018 10:52

“So is it when someone talks a lot about various causes and social ills on social media but don’t actually give any money to charity?”

It’s surely OK to be concerned about “causes” but not be in a position to donate money?

samosabinge · 20/02/2018 12:06

It's fine to not be in a position to help but raise awareness/support

I assumed virtue signalling like with references to Lily Allen... where she did have resources herself but plasters herself over media calling out others for not helping

Or the attitude of "speaking up for those who can't" when actually what you're doing is speaking for those who wish you'd shut up so they could actually be heard in the first place as they're saying something different to your shortsighted assumptions

samosabinge · 20/02/2018 12:11

Or this

Can someone explain virtue signalling to me?

nauticant · 20/02/2018 12:35

I like the term so long as it's used meaningfully.

It's not necessarily about pretending, because it can relate to a sincerely held belief. It's about someone wanting to be seen by others to be supporting a cause in the expectation that they will think better of the virtue signaller. It can be taking place even when some useful good is being done.

BertrandRussell · 20/02/2018 13:22

But I have only really heard of it used as an insult. I think it's now more or less interchangeable with "the PC Brigade".....

nauticant · 20/02/2018 13:29

And I've often heard it used meaningfully.

It is still valid even though some numpties use it as a catch-all insult. In the same way that "PC" is still a valid concept although woefully misused.

3EyedRaven · 20/02/2018 13:34

Opened that article, saw this By saying that they hate the Daily Mail or Ukip, they are really telling you that they are admirably non-racist, left-wing or open-minded

Half of Mumsnet. You really don’t need to bring up the daily mail in every thread lol

SecondCousinIt · 20/02/2018 18:02

Got to love the virtue-signallers getting riled at the term - it's one of the most useful descriptors for those who have fully embraced social media narcissism.

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