The Oxford Mail and Swindon Advertiser's sports desks will boycott social media from 3pm today until 11.59pm on Monday. All the usual coverage can be found on our respective websites.

YOU only need to look back to last week to see how social media can be a force for good in football.

The wave of anger against the European Super League spread far quicker than it ever would in the pre-internet age, forcing the world’s most powerful clubs to U-turn in less than 72 hours.

It was heartening to see, especially when barely a week goes by without seeing another footballer being subjected to vile – and often racist – abuse.

Read also: Oxford United players speak out against online abuse

This is not limited to the sport we love, of course, but football cannot sit and do nothing as the problem gets worse.

Oxford United and Swindon Town are huge rivals on and off the pitch, but this weekend they will team up and stay silent together with the rest of English football to say ‘enough is enough’.

As the newspapers that cover these teams 365 days of the year, the Mail's sports desk and Adver Sport feel it is important to join the social media boycott.

All the usual coverage will be on our respective websites, but we will not be posting anything on Twitter or Facebook.

We understand and appreciate this will affect our ability to report on our teams, but as a human rights issue, we feel nothing is more important than equality.

Switching off social media for four days will not eradicate online abuse on its own, but we hope it is the first step in forcing long-overdue change.

Thank you for your understanding.

By James Roberts (Oxford Mail) and Jonny Leighfield (Swindon Advertiser)