We’ll keep this simple, because this is not a complicated concept: don’t post spoilers on the damn internet.
There are exceptions, caveats, and ways around this very simple rule. Talking about a big moment that’s just happened on a very popular TV show or in a movie half the country’s going to see is part of the fun: we’re all experiencing it together, and that includes going online to pick apart tiny details or just be one of a million people sitting silently on their couches typing “IM SVCREAMING” into Twitter.
But if you’re posting any plot details – including implying someone dies but not naming names – on socials or in your group chats, you’re risking spoiling that experience for the people who can’t carve out an hour in their early evenings (let alone their Australian-time lunch break) to watch the latest episode; who need to be online for work and don’t have the luxury of a social media blackout; or who can’t access an episode the same night it airs for any reason. It’s not like pre-VCR TV where if you missed the finale of M*A*S*H you missed it – you just can’t assume people are up to date.
Many people feel like there are unspoken rules of thumb – like the moratorium on spoilery chat should be X number of days for a new episode of Thrones or X weeks for a new Marvel movie – but until we can collectively actually speak and agree on what those time frames should be, your own opinion on when that window closes is meaningless to anyone else.
Even if you don’t care about the silly dragontits show or superhero movies, the plot reveals are a worldwide community watching experience that’s genuinely rare in the age of streaming things at your leisure.
And yes, people who don’t want to be spoiled should take steps to avoid spoilers, but the internet/social media works in such a way that you can’t guarantee that only the right people will see what you’ve posted. You’re scrolling carefully and BAM, a reply shows up in your feed with half the episode in it.
It’s just this simple: the whole world doesn’t need your take on how [REDACTED] it is that [REDACTED] and [REDACTED] gave [REDACTED] a good [REDACTING] this week, any more than it needs your defensive comments about how if people were real fans they’d watch straight away, like you.
Keep your detailed hot takes in spaces clearly marked HERE BE SPOILERS, whether that’s a Reddit thread or a Facebook group, rather than just, say, throwing entire excerpts from the script into the comments on an article with a responsibly phrased, cryptic headline.
Basically, if you’re lucky enough to be among the first people in the world to be part of that moment, it’s kind to do your best to preserve that experience for other people. You absolutely have the option to be thoughtful and take a few moments to check yourself.
Otherwise you’re just Homer Simpson, walking out of The Empire Strikes Back, yelling out the most famous spoiler in history.
