ABIGAIL MILLER
Special to The Leader
Yik Yak is a popular social media app available in the United States. Users can post anonymously and set their location to see posts from other users nearby. In November of 2021, the app surpassed 2 million users, and a large proportion of them are college students.
Fredonia has a prominent community on Yik Yak. Every few minutes, a new post appears on Yik Yak from someone within a five mile radius of the Fredonia campus. With so much content being posted daily and shared throughout the student body, it seems word spreads faster than ever now at Fredonia.
I reached out to both on-and off-campus students in an attempt at gaining a general consensus about students’ feelings toward Yik Yak. Twenty-four different users responded to my posts on Yik Yak and I received additional points of view from six students from outside of the app.
Here’s what they had to say:
Do you have Yik Yak?
Out of the students I spoke to, one student had not heard of Yik Yak, two students had heard of Yik Yak but did not have it, and the majority, 27 students, had heard of Yik Yak and have the app.
Why did you download Yik Yak?
The majority of responses indicated that users are most likely to know of Yik Yak through word of mouth and most likely to download the app because their friends are on it. There were also users who stated that they downloaded Yik Yak for reasons such as wanting to know how long the line is at Starbucks and wanting to know the locations to parties, both of which are sometimes posted on the app.
What sort of information do you get from Yik Yak?
Yik Yak intrigues student users, first and foremost, by allowing them to get updates about what’s going on around campus, as well as entertaining them through lighthearted posts and giving them insight into campus drama.
One student said, “I go on Yik Yak for the same reason I go on any other social media platform: for entertainment. … I also like to use it to stay updated on things going on around me. I feel like I’m usually lost when it comes to current news within my age group, so it’s nice to be in the loop and know what’s happening around me.”
What is your favorite feature of Yik Yak?
It’s clear that the main attraction of Yik Yak is its anonymity. Users are drawn to the fact that they can voice their opinions without having to take responsibility for the impact that comes with them.
Unlike other social media apps, since Yik Yak does not require users to reveal their identity, students can feel comfortable knowing that they will be perceived fully on what they say, instead of who they are.
“It’s nice to have a place to vent or express yourself and people don’t know you so they don’t prejudge what you’re saying,” one user revealed. “Coffee [this user’s emoji] is just coffee. Coffee is not a race or a specific gender or a certain major.”
What would you say is the worst part about Yik Yak?
Students have expressed concern over the amount of bullying that occurs on the app, which includes fat shaming, transphobia, ableism and sexism. Other disapproval is targeted toward the amount of spamming on Yik Yak, as well as the continuous sexual requests of some users.
Do you believe that misinformation exists or is spread by Yik Yak?
The reply to this question was a unanimous “yes.” However, there is a minor number of students that believe that it is not a very prevalent issue.
Do you believe that Yik Yak is beneficial to campus inclusion?
Overall, the majority of students agree that Yik Yak is beneficial to campus inclusion. Users cited their connection to the campus community resulting from the app as the reason for this sense of inclusivity.
Do you believe that faculty, in addition to students, are on Yik Yak?
Surprisingly, several students were adamant about their belief that there are faculty members who are users on Yik Yak. There were multiple users who claimed to have been outright told by faculty members that certain faculty have accounts on Yik Yak.
Do you believe that Yik Yak has more of a positive or negative impact on the campus community?
Out of each of the questions I presented, I received the most divisive response to this one.
While four students said that Yik Yak had both a positive and negative impact on campus community, four students believed the impact to be more positive. Whereas, four students believed the impact to be more negative, respectively.
“As far as I know, it’s really the only thing you have to know how everyone else on campus is feeling about something,” one student said.
Another student responded, “It can be annoying at worst, and you can meet new people at best.”
All in all, it seems that Yik Yak has its fair share of student critique, but also a substantial amount of student support.
“There’s a lot of negativity on here,” noted a Yik Yak user. “However, there are a lot of people who come to the app for help anonymously, and I’ve seen a lot of people help each other behind a screen.”