Current Events > WTF is virtue signaling

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What does it even mean

It's when you signal for Absolute Virtue in FF11 to come so the raid can start.

Lip service of claiming of being a good person and then busted doing something that is the opposite of what they previously claimed.

https://letmegooglethat.com/?q=virtue+signaling

OudeGeuze posted...

What does it even mean

It's when you espouse a point of view on an issue to score social cred (while not actually doing anything about it in real life)

A system of traffic controls in the virtua fighter universe

When you go out of your way to parrot the morally "correct" opinions to influence your audience to like you more for being a good person. It's essentially being ingenuine to gain some perceived benefit from a group.

Republican politicians openly supporting Trump (especially if they morally stand against him in their personal lives) is a form of virtue signaling to gain votes from his base.

It's when you adopt views that are in vogue as righteous and moral but don't actually have any moral values and are just doing them for clout.

Like the blue check libs on twitter who acted like the kids-in-cages, I/P, or trumps wall was tearing their hearts apart up until biden got elected and then it became unfashionable and no longer earned them clout points among their peers. They're people who abandon any moral stands they claim to have in a heartbeat if the winds of public opinion change (ie- most democrats).

It's cynical and depressing but very common. The people who virtue signal generally have no actual moral beliefs and adopt whatever they think will win clout with their demographic/peer group.

Performative activism for internet brownie points.
Relevant topic: https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/boards/400-current-events/80705842

Signaling to virtue

It's what sociopaths call empathy.

They way that people on the right use , it means not being an asshole.

it doesn't mean anything. a virtue is a moral standard. signaling it is talking about it, bringing attention to, etc. you could say that about every single political and social stance.

it's functional meaning is "people i don't like talking about a thing i disagree with."

pauIie posted...

it's functional meaning is "people i don't like talking about a thing i disagree with."

Its usually used to mean an insincere attempt at optics or clout. No one would ever say aaron bushnell or people who've spent decades consistently behind a cause are virtue signaling; but corporate attempts at greenwashing, certain types of rainbow capitalism, and a lot of the bluecheck crowd who flip stances and go to bat for whoever their party rallies behind and drop their old stances in a heartbeat 100% are.

If you're on twitter you see it a LOT.

the real answer is that it's a tactic used by sycophants who don't actually practice what they preach in order to appear better than they are. goat thief did it all the time to try and brush his universal terrible reputation under the rug, but no one was fooled as far as i can tell. shockthemonkey constantly did shit like this to justify starting drama and taking potshots, and when that didn't work, he'd just make up a story about something that happened at work, lol

there's a big difference between simply believing something is morally right or just, and looking down on people from a pedestal and using this and that to justify lashing out at whoever you don't like, then call it "punching up"

All words out of the blue hair twitter person

oh, great example, that "list" or whatever in the topic about that twitter person running off christina vee when they had their facts wrong. none of that shit exists for any reason but to virtue signal to their followers for clout. it's just a way to try and say, sure i'm a miserable person doing malicious things, but they deserve it!

XxX_6GAMING9GOKU_XxX posted...

Its usually used to mean an insincere attempt at optics or clout. No one would ever say aaron bushnell or people who've spent decades consistently behind a cause are virtue signaling; but corporate attempts at greenwashing, certain types of rainbow capitalism, and a lot of the bluecheck crowd who flip stances and go to bat for whoever their party rallies behind and drop their old stances in a heartbeat 100% are.

If you're on twitter you see it a LOT.

one time i was told i was virtue signaling when talking about a potential sexual abuse case. my stance is believe victims, the person saying virtue signaling wasn't. even though him talking about his stance, was also a virtue signal.

What's the word for people who fights social justice but only online and they never take their words into action? Is that considered virtual signaling as well?

Here is a good example: Land Acknowledgments

It has become trendy for businesses, performing arts groups, etc. to issue a statement acknowledging that the land where they conduct business once belonged to various indigenous tribes. It's virtue signaling because all they do is make the statement, they don't offer anything to those tribes in the form of charity, discounts, shared land use, etc. But it makes them feel better to admit that they are profiting from stolen lands

VeggetaX posted...

What's the word for people who fights social justice but only online and they never take their words into action? Is that considered virtual signaling as well?

slacktivism? and certainly, it's easy, makes you feel good, and look good to your peers. sweet deal

viewmaster_pi posted...

slacktivism? and certainly, it's easy, makes you feel good, and look good to your peers. sweet deal

Yes that's the word. There's a few like that on here but I'm sure they take no offense or shame to the term.

VeggetaX posted...

What's the word for people who fights social justice but only online and they never take their words into action?

praxis posters

Historically it's a bit like "woke" in that many definitions are given but any of them that aren't "you're saying the thing that I dislike" fall off pretty much the second you put any scrutiny on them. Especially since the people involved in using the term "seriously" have different ways to flit around that definition and thus you will end up with multiple mutually exclusive ways of it being used/defined.

There are legitimate definitions and examples above, though nowadays it's commonly used as an accusatory term by morons who choose not to comprehend that someone they don't politically align with can have morals.

Euripides posted...

It has become trendy for businesses, performing arts groups, etc. to issue a statement acknowledging that the land where they conduct business once belonged to various indigenous tribes. It's virtue signaling because all they do is make the statement, they don't offer anything to those tribes in the form of charity, discounts, shared land use, etc. But it makes them feel better to admit that they are profiting from stolen lands

That's a great example. I would actually take this further, and say that such signaling of virtue not only allows them to pat themselves on the back, but also gains them sales cred from people who (in their own virtue signaling) wish to purchase from "good" businesses, while not actually looking at what "good" means.

[LFAQs-redacted-quote]

Much like with "woke" if it was something legit then it would apply to conservatives just as much, if not more. Almost everything that they do is signaling. Similarly saying that someone doesn't truly believe in something is just full of it: it's just right-winger nonsense about how everyone actually really thinks like them but they just won't admit it.

So yeah, you can come up with a definition pretty easily and obviously but having one that consistently holds up just doesn't work so well.

ellis123 posted...

Historically it's a bit like "woke" in that many definitions are given but any of them that aren't "you're saying the thing that I dislike" fall off pretty much the second you put any scrutiny on them. Especially since the people involved in using the term "seriously" have different ways to flit around that definition and thus you will end up with multiple mutually exclusive ways of it being used/defined.

The right is accused of virtue signaling just as often as the left. Hell - the GOP primaries were a huge joke, precisely because none of the pretenders could dethrone the man to which they paid fealty in an unprecedented bout of virtue signaling over the last 8 years or so.

When you don't practice what you preach

starcrunch061 posted...

The right is accused of virtue signaling just as often as the left. Hell - the GOP primaries were a huge joke, precisely because none of the pretenders could dethrone the man to which they paid fealty in an unprecedented bout of virtue signaling over the last 8 years or so.

Ye, but at no point did anyone (even here) actually refer to it as virtue signaling. If it finally has been then I will agree that there is a definition.

"I just donated to charity! See what a humanitarian I am?"

"I have a friend... who is Black! I'm totally not racist."

"This character is gay. While we've had positive LGBTQ characters in our stories for years, THIS one deserves to be recognized as if they were the first gay character in history."

It's people calling attention to themselves doing the things they should be doing anyway. Bigots use the term to try and defame anyone who isn't a bigoted piece of shit. But that doesn't mean that some people don't seriously pat themselves on the back for doing what they should already be doing.

ellis123 posted...

Ye, but at no point did anyone (even here) actually refer to it as virtue signaling. If it finally has been then I will agree that there is a definition.

They did. I don't know about here - I just popped over here today. But The Economist (not exactly a liberal rag) absolutely called out the antics of folks like Kim Reynolds and Ron DeSantis, using the very term "virtue signaling" (specifically referring to virtue signaling to their respective bases).

Basically something that corporations love to do.

"Happy Pride Month everyone! We love and respect all members of every community and even made our logo a rainbow! Oh yeah, we are also laying off 20% of our amazing, diverse workforce to make the CEO and investors richer and raising prices 15% and aiming to replace everyone with AI and machines and making all efforts to squash unions. Happy Black History Month which we don't care about anymore come March!"

Here's a spicy take for you;

It's a term that, like social justice warrior, was conceived of by people with no empathy to explain why others were doing and saying things that helped others. It clearly had to be some kind of scam in their eyes because the idea of being kind for no personal benefit was entirely alien to them.

'Virtue signalling' is a phrase that is used to smear anyone showing support for a cause that the user does not approve of.

It implies that no one could seriously hold that position: 'oh, I see you're virtue signalling about trans issues again'.

Cynrascal posted...

Lip service of claiming of being a good person and then busted doing something that is the opposite of what they previously claimed.

I've been seeing a concerning large number of people who get exposed like this after claiming to be wildly against sexualization in games. Usually for something heinous like pedophilia too.

Virtue signaling is what Taylor Swift does a lot. Pretends to be on LGBT side by making songs "supporting" them but it was just to get more album sales, pretends to care about the environment but literally uses her private jet for a 20 mile trips and pretends to be all about women empowerment and supporting other women but she bullied Katy Perry and made a song about Katy (Bad Blood ) and had like 20 celebs in that music video. She is the poster child for virtue signaling

When you superficially support a cause to gain clout or brownie points by showing how "virtuous" you are.

Rainbow capitalism in June is the best example.

Making an empty gesture that supposedly shows support for a cause, for the purpose of making yourself look good rather than genuine care about the cause.

It's more commonly applied to companies than individual people. Think of things like when all the companies turn their profile pictures rainbow during pride month (but only in LGBT+-friendly markets, and while doing nothing else to show support).

BoomerKuwanger posted...

The best example of actual virtue signaling is companies doing a rainbow logo in June because they believe it sells more, then behind the scenes they donate to Republican (aka anti-LGBT) politicians.

The correct definition.

Trumble posted...

Making an empty gesture that supposedly shows support for a cause, for the purpose of making yourself look good rather than genuine care about the cause.

It's more commonly applied to companies than individual people.

Also the correct definition.

95% of the time I see this phrase used its by the same folks who will then go and buy a dozen cases of Bud Light so they can record themselves pouring it out because they used a trans woman in some advertising.

I don't think someone has to not actually be supporting the cause they say they do for it to be virtue signaling.

Like if a company gives a bunch of money to charity and then spends a bunch more money advertising the fact that they gave a lot to charity that is virtue signaling. They still did a good thing by donating to charity but they're also using it as a way to promote their company, which may have been their whole reason for doing it in the first place.

Of course, it's worse when a person or a company's actions run contrary to what they say they believe in.