The unfortunate series of events in Naomi H’s life has been widely reported (for example, here in USA Today). Naomi H (@NaomiH_official) quickly lost a lauded NASA internship through a series of vulgar, expletive-filled tweets to a well-known senior space advisor.
Just hours after being accepted for the internship, she started the now-deleted thread with:
EVERYONE SHUT THE F*** UP. I GOT ACCEPTED FOR A NASA INTERNSHIP
she wrote.
Homer Hickam, a former NASA engineer and now, current member of the National Space Council replied to her tweet with a simple,
Language.
The now fired NASA intern replied,
Suck my d**k and b***s I’m working at NASA.
Hickam replied with a simple,
And I am on the National Space Council that oversees NASA.
What caught the attention of NASA with the result being Naomi’s firing were the subsequent tweets sent by Naomi’s friends that included the hashtag ‘NASA’.
WHAT’S THE TAKEAWAY?
Be aware that potential employers can and will consider public social media posts in their hiring decisions.
This awareness should create a level of discretion with any public social media post, and particularly one that references a professional engagement or opportunity. Profane or vulgar language by its very nature carries the risk of high toxicity. If you wouldn’t say it in a text to your grandmother, it may be too strong to say in a public post.