Misinformation, Conformity and the Rush to Judge People 

Imagine you are a 40-year-old single mother raising two young children all on your own. One summer morning, you decide to visit a school in your neighbourhood to gather admission-related information for your younger daughter. You leave your house without the slightest inkling that you are never going to return home to your precious kids, that it is going to be the last day of your life on earth, and that you will soon meet the most horrifying kind of death, all because of false rumours and fake news on Facebook.

This is what happened to Taslima Begum Renu, who was brutally lynched by a mob in front of North Badda Government Primary School in Dhaka on July 20, 2019. The absurd context of the mass hysteria that caused Renu’s untimely death will enrage you, devastate you, and make you question the basic intelligence and sanity of the common people of Bangladesh.

Renu’s death followed baseless social media posts in mid-2019 claiming that miscreants were kidnapping people for human sacrifices, particularly children’s heads, to build the Padma Bridge. The rumours sparked widespread panic and suspicion of strangers around schools, playgrounds and markets. On the fateful day, while Renu was asking about children’s admission, guardian Ria Begum Moyna suddenly labelled her a kidnapper. A crowd of 100 to 150 people then surrounded and lynched Renu, while several hundred bystanders watched, recorded the incident or cheered as Ibrahim Hossain struck her lifeless body. Nobody intervened. More than five years later, Ibrahim was sentenced to death and four others, including Ria, received life terms. You would think the official verdicts would inspire changes in the public’s mindset and actions, right? The answer is a not-so-surprising no.

Evidently, social media trials are fast and seem to satisfy people’s demand for justice and instant accountability, but they can leave lasting consequences for victims of unfair trials. If claims and allegations prove wrong, they may destroy a person’s career, reputation, relationships, mental well-being and even their entire life.

Bangladeshis use different social media platforms, among which Facebook remains at the top, with 74,871,500 active users or 41.3 per cent of the entire population in Bangladesh as of July 2026. For many, Facebook is a major source of news and information. A single viral post can trigger massive public outcry, leading to hateful comments, angry reactions, the tagging of influencers and police, and unwarranted demands for justice.

In the digital space, where information can spread like wildfire, failing to verify it before sharing can turn social media into an informal courtroom where innocent people may face unfair sham trials. Online news often becomes viral so quickly that even authorities, fact-checkers, investigators and journalists cannot keep up. By the time facts are checked, clarifications are offered and actions are taken, something drastic may already have been done by the public, be it an opinion formed or justice delivered.

This was evident in another gut-wrenching incident similar to Renu’s in December 2025. Remember Dipu Chandra Das, a garment worker in Bhaluka, Mymensingh, who met the same fate? In this tragic example of modern online vigilantism, Dipu lost his life because of workplace rumours and unwarranted social media claims accusing him of blasphemy. Subsequent investigations by the RAB found no evidence of it, indicating that Dipu, like Renu, was caught in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Unfortunately, the viralisation of misinformation cannot be controlled with digital literacy alone. Human psychology also plays a key role. In a classic 1951 experiment on conformity, Dr Solomon Asch found that individuals often defer to the crowd’s opinion even when it is visibly incorrect. This happens largely because of two factors: normative social influence, when an individual conforms despite knowing others are wrong because they fear being judged or mocked; and informational social influence, when an individual experiences self-doubt because they believe others are smarter or better-informed. This behavioural pattern is commonly observed on social media, where people believe what others say rather than thinking rationally about it.

Evidently, social media trials are fast and seem to satisfy people’s demand for justice and instant accountability, but they can leave lasting consequences for victims of unfair trials. If claims and allegations prove wrong, they may destroy a person’s career, reputation, relationships, mental well-being and even their entire life.

So how do we change the situation? Stricter laws and regulations regarding the circulation of online information can be introduced and enforced so that news, claims, allegations and accusations can be fact-checked. Perpetrators spreading misinformation can also be tracked and held responsible. Such strict implementation of rules can perhaps induce fear in the minds of fearmongers and offenders like Ibrahim.

But how will we change the mindsets of people like Ria Begum, who make snap judgments without regard for consequences? Or how will we encourage bystanders who silently participate in unfair media trials to raise their voices? Until and unless the collective mindset changes, unfair trials will keep taking place in Facebook courtrooms, and countless lives of falsely accused people will be ruined. It was Renu in 2019, Dipu in 2025, and maybe you or we tomorrow who have to pay the price of unfounded public opinions. So what can each of us do to break this cycle before we become the next headline?