PBS Idea Channel

Is It Okay To Mourn Celebrity Death Online? (5x1)

Air date: Mar 16, 2016

As we progress further into the age of technology and social media, some new trends have emerged around how we as a society deal with death. The younger generation’s tendencies to mourn in the public space that is the internet has been met with a certain amount of criticism and contempt, but is it warranted? Our modern culture has created a stigma around the ways in which we choose to grieve, and has attempted to designate what is “acceptable” and “genuine,” and what is not. On this week’s Idea Channel, we offer a defense of online mourning, and why it should not be met with such disdain.