Contrary to the nasty comments you sometimes see when you log onto social media, I think the overall rationale behind the idea was to provide a forum where the positive exchange of thoughts and ideas could occur. Maybe I’m being a bit naïve, but hear me out If you agree with someone online, you can “like” their Facebook status updates and “favorite” their tweets. Even though you can make negative comments on posts if you choose, the fact that most social networks don’t have a built-in method for expressing displeasure with something is an attempt to try to keep things in the online world civil. But if one app developer has his way, all of that supposed positivity is about to change. Get ready, Haters, your time has come!

 CEO Jake Banks launched his Hater App at this year’s SXSW Conference and it's being dubbing "the Instagram for Haters.” Banks said he created the app because “There was a lack of a place to voice that point of view in the social network world”. You can sign in using Facebook or Twitter, and the app will allow users to create an alter ego so that you don’t end up fired when you hate on your supervisor’s boring staff meetings and awful jokes. Once you’ve created an account, you can take a picture of something you hate (and add Instagram-like filters), search Google and upload an image, or write your rant out. Hater even has the thumbs-down version of Facebook’s “like” button as its logo. As the app's website denotes, a few of the things currently being hated on include Justin Bieber and Kim Kardashian, traffic, waiting in long lines and Crocs. 

Banks sees the app as an opportunity for companies to get free market research on where they can make improvements. And considering Comcast, AT&T, and Sony are just a few I found in the app's 'favorites,' businesses may want to take note. Banks also sees Hater as a vehicle for social change. On the website, one of the suggested uses for the app is “hate for change”.  The idea is that if enough people hate the fact that there are, for example, 16 million children hungry in America, then maybe something positive can be done to effect change.

Personally, I fear that this app will probably provide another way for bullies to harass young people online, something the developer says will be monitored. The app still has a little way to go in terms of the user interface, and with a staff of only six people, it’ll definitely be an uphill climb. Hater is free and currently available for iPhone, with an Android version on the way.

I suppose it’s all a part of human nature to want to express your opinion, be it positive or negative. Hater can be a fun way to vent, but just like anything else online, it needs to be used responsibly. So go ahead and hate away – just remeber to be nice!

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