Zoe Saldana’s tough experience with cyberbullying
Zoe Saldana has experienced her "fair share" of cyberbullying.
The ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ star isn’t immune to receiving hate online but won’t let that stop her from sharing things with her followers.
She said: "Of course, social media, as we all know, has a dark side. Cyberbullying is a growing epidemic (I’ve experienced my fair share). But no matter what happens, or what the reaction may be, I am not going to stop sharing. That’s not to say that I haven’t learned a thing or two along the way.
"I am working to reshape the way I want to say things, and I know how important it is to choose your words wisely. The truth is, we’re living in a soundbite era. People aren’t interested in the conversation of something, they just want the headline of it. So that means that I just have to be a little wiser in the way I express myself."
And the 38-year-old actress – who has two-year-old twins Cy and Bowie and one-month-old son Zen with her husband Marco Perego – knows her presence on social media has had a positive effect on those around her too.
In an essay for InStyle.com, she added: "Even though I’m in the public eye, I’m a very discreet person. So, when I go on social media, I ask myself one question: What do I want to share of myself? … Without fail, I end up sharing the most positive parts of my life – things that I feel I’ve made massive improvements on, or experiences with my family that will, maybe, inspire other families. Social media also provides an avenue to allow more positivity into my own life.
"When my husband took my last name, so many men came out and confessed that that’s what they did in their own lives. We were deeply moved by their reaction, and I felt really so happy that I was shedding a light on a group of men that are constantly overlooked. So by my husband and I sharing this experience, it gave them validation and we felt like we had made a meaningful difference in their lives."
