Dear Matzav Inbox, 
We must speak out about something that’s causing tremendous harm in our communities today: lashon hara, gossip, and even innocent-sounding innuendo.
The Chofetz Chaim makes it crystal clear in Sefer Chafetz Chaim (Introduction, 1) that lashon hara is an aveirah so severe that it’s on par with murder. The damage done by harmful speech isn’t just to the person being spoken about. It destroys relationships, causes hatred, and spreads division in Klal Yisroel.
The Gemara (Arachin 15b) compares lashon hara to murder, because just like a knife can take a life, words can destroy a person’s reputation and cause lifelong damage.
And the Yerushalmi (Pe’ah 1:1) tells us that someone who spreads lashon hara should be removed from the community, because their presence is a danger to the unity of the Jewish people.
But today, lashon hara has become even more dangerous—because now it’s not just spoken in small circles. The rise of WhatsApp, social media, and other online platforms has made it possible for someone to spread harmful speech to hundreds, thousands, even millions of people with the click of a button. The damage is no longer confined to a small group of people; it spreads like wildfire, poisoning the minds of countless individuals.
The Chofetz Chaim already warned in his sefer (Chapter 7, Halacha 7) that the larger the audience, the greater the damage—and today, the audience can be global.
Rav Moshe Feinstein (Igros Moshe, Yoreh Deah 1:65) writes that lashon hara is even more dangerous when spread to the masses. “When lashon hara reaches many people, the harm is far greater because it affects a much larger group,” he says. The spread of harmful speech today isn’t just an isolated incident; it’s a communal catastrophe.
The Chofetz Chaim himself talks about the dangers of modern technology, saying that things like the telephone – and later the internet obviously – make lashon hara much worse. Words spread faster than ever before, and once they’re out there, they’re nearly impossible to take back.
In today’s world, someone’s reputation can be ruined with a single WhatsApp message or post that goes viral. And once it’s out there, the damage is done, and there’s no way to undo it.
Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach (Halichos Shlomo, Sha’ar HaTzniyus 6) warned that lashon hara has never been as dangerous as it is today. It spreads so fast, and the consequences are felt so widely. When lashon hara was spoken in private, the damage was limited to those who heard it. But now, with social media, it can go everywhere in a split second, affecting everyone who sees it.
The Torah tells us (Vayikra 19:16) that we must be careful with our words. And the Chofetz Chaim teaches us that lashon hara isn’t just something that harms individuals—it destroys entire communities. Today, when someone spreads gossip online or on WhatsApp, it’s not just one person’s reputation that’s harmed. The damage multiplies with every person who hears it.
Just as the Gemara (Arachin 15b) tells us that those who speak lashon hara should be removed from the community, we need to apply the same approach to those who spread harmful speech on social media and WhatsApp. We can’t allow this type of poison to spread unchecked. The Chofetz Chaim, Rav Moshe Feinstein, and all our gedolim have warned us about the dangers of lashon hara—and it’s time we take those warnings seriously.
We need to stand up against this, not just for the sake of individuals, but for the sake of Klal Yisroel. The consequences are too great to ignore, and we must take responsibility to protect our communities from the destruction caused by harmful words—whether spoken in person or shared online.
Sincerely,
T. B.
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