The Uninvited Radiologist

My favorite podcaster hasn’t given this fun because it’s true observation a name as far as I’m aware, but one might call it the 25 percent rule. Do a poll of just about anything (sociopolitical topics work best), and somewhere around a quarter of respondents will make the dumbest choice.

Social media has amplified the effect, courtesy of bots and trolls. Even cold-call telephone polls and spam emails probably moved the needle in this direction. Outside of a face-to-face interaction, one is more likely to give a flip response or answer without really thinking. Whatever the reason, we seem to be at a juncture where a Twitter (sorry, “X” still seems silly to me) poll of “Would you jump off a cliff if your friends did it?” will get 25 +/-5% “yes” responses.

It’s hard to imagine that legacy media are unaware of this. A reasonable reaction might be to assume that there are a lot of idiots and unserious people out there, and to take the en masse “wisdom” of the crowd with many grains of salt. Much of the media, however, thrives on the buzz of controversy so it is better for them to take that ball and run with it. It allows for headlines such as “26% of Americans think free speech is bad!” or “23% believe lizards run the government.”

I have determined a corollary of the 25% rule: People don’t wait for a poll to lump themselves in with the quarter of the population who would have the dumbest answer to any question. A lot of them eagerly offer their two cents when it wasn’t asked for or wanted at all, and when they do, it is often the dumbest, most tone-deaf take imaginable.

Social media, again, has made this a lot clearer to me than it might otherwise have been. I have noticed it a lot more in radiology forums. That could simply be because I spend more time in them, but I suspect folks with stronger egos (greater education and/or professional success being correlates) are more inclined to showcase their self-perceived brilliance without having been invited to do so.

Uninvited comments are, of course, the main ingredient of social media. If the general public couldn’t respond to posts (with words or even “thumbs up” icons), I suspect the whole phenomenon would wither. That might not be a bad thing. Society might be better off if in-person interactions made a comeback.

There are nevertheless different flavors of “uninvited” and the ego-driven ones come across as less pleasing to the metaphorical palate. A rad posting an inquiry about which fellowships are more competitive in the job market isn’t inviting anybody in particular. After a fashion, all replies are uninvited. One might alternatively consider it an open invitation in which anybody providing an opinion on the subject is welcome, including “Don’t bother with a fellowship, and here’s why.”

Probably most common specimen of the bitter uninvited is the rad who ignores the spirit of the posting, either “hijacking the thread” or taking an unwarranted swipe at whoever made the post. Themes run along the lines of “That’s a stupid question and/or you’re stupid for asking it,” or “This post reminds me of something entirely unrelated, but instead of starting my own thread, I’m going to talk about my subject here in the comments.”

Almost as bad is taking aim at someone else who sincerely responded to the post. For instance, suppose someone answers the aforementioned fellowship question by singing some praises of breast imaging. Now someone else replies to the mammo response with nonsense like “only the [insert pejorative here] rads go into breast imaging,” or “That’s bad advice,” without offering a reason why.

The common theme underlying these flavors of “uninvited” is that they are unwelcome. The rads involved are no less invited than others in the exchange of ideas, but they have chosen to go against the spirit of the thread. Unless the original poster said something to the effect of “I’m feeling ornery, let’s rumble,” or otherwise began with a rattling of sabers, anybody with a lick of social grace should understand that introducing contention is boorish.

Nowhere have I seen this more blatantly demonstrated than in humorous threads. A rad sees a fun image or entertaining turn of phrase in technologist notes, clinical histories, or even other rads’ reports. He or she shares it in radiology social media for others to enjoy, maybe adding a fun comment (and of course duly anonymizing patients and health-care folks). Unless it is a complete dud, many rads seeing the post will “like” it, and maybe reply with something that adds to the humor.

Tastes differ, of course, and plenty of those seeing it may not be entertained. Largely, they won’t respond to the post, and just move on with their day. A socially mature, emotionally balanced individual is capable of understanding that other people can enjoy something that the individual does not.

The uninvited/unwelcome rad, however, makes a point of commenting negatively: “This isn’t funny.” “Posts like this are unprofessional!” “Why are you making fun of _____?” To not coin a phrase: “Stop liking what I don’t like!”

The uninvited radiologist can have a valid point to make...but that doesn’t change the fact that the rad’s point weren’t asked for. Remember the old saw, “If you don’t have anything nice to say …?” It’s rightly considered a bit simplistic. Sometimes, not being nice is appropriate to right wrongs and improve the world.

That “sometimes” bears a lot of emphasis. Usually, we are not trying to solve the world’s big problems, but instead just going about our days, maybe enjoy them a little and help others do the same. If you happen to see a lighthearted or otherwise non-momentous social media posting, overhear a conversation, etc., and you have no harmonious contribution for it, it’s usually better not to impose yourself in a show of how disharmonious you can be.

That might seem counterintuitive to some rads. We tend to hang around dark rooms (or remote home offices) on our own, and it would make sense that many of us aren’t social butterflies. However, for those who enjoy the feeling of being welcomed and thought of when invitations are actually being sent out, it is worth making a habit of “reading the room.” Make your input the sort of thing people are likely to appreciate.