Dealing With Trolls
How to handle online trolls.
An unfortunate reality of having a presence online is having to deal with trolls.
In fairy trails, a troll was “an ugly creature depicted as either a giant or a dwarf”. Today, online, trolls can take many forms.
From biting satiric comments, to lies, to misleading information, to personal attacks, to unwelcome overtures, to actual threats, trolls share one thing in common, they want to shut people down, they want to make it uncomfortable to have an online presence, to force you out. There is a reason that trolls attack activists, and women, and people of color, and every person who wants to question or disrupt the status quo. Trolls know the world is changing, they are afraid their power is decreasing, so they attack. Close cousin to trolls are bots, which are essentially a computerized army of trolls launched by one big troll.
I’m a very private person, but the nature of my work requires a presence on social media, so I do it, every day. And I get trolls. From ‘you don’t know what you’re talking about’ (yes, I do) to ‘I love you’ and ‘you’re so beautiful’. (which are about as welcome compliments as Luis Rubiales’ ‘kissing’ Jenni Hermoso, meaning not at all.)
After one too many troll comments, I posted an Instagram reel about how to deal with trolls. Not surprisingly, one of the comments was, “You look like a troll”. I literally burst out laughing, because as a woman of a certain age, there is not a single aspect of my appearance, personality, and overall existence that has not been criticized. At this point in my life, I’m essentially troll-vaccinated, it just rolls off me like water off a duck’s back. However, the topic resonated with my audience. Sadly. The video has the most ‘likes’ of any of the almost 40 videos I’ve posted and I posted a follow-up reel today.
The relatively anonymous nastiness has become prevalent in our society. It’s not just social media (though the fact that the main tech companies were started by men who didn’t fit in socially and have an axe to grind does rather set the tone). It’s not just recent politics. It’s not just reality TV. In the U.S., it’s the despair of a large swath of the country who have been told repeatedly that their way of life and their values are being destroyed. Despair, fear, and anger have been the most effectively marketed emotions in the last 40 years, starting with Newt Gingrich’s intentional erosion of social norms, accelerated and given a voice by cable networks like Fox News and MSNBC, finally free of the requirement to fact-check in favor of ‘entertainment’.
We, activists, average people, are being effectively divided and conquered.
Distraction Marketing, keeping us distracted from the real problems, has been used to formidable effect - setting us running after abortion, gay rights, drag queens, and gun laws instead of focusing on the underlying system that is setting us against one another, supported and financed by historically unprecedented levels of wealth inequality. Wealth inequality created by, and accelerated by, corporate money in politics (Citizens United), surgical precision in reducing the IRS’ ability to audit high net worth individuals taxes, corporations and the super-rich paying little to no U.S. taxes, and CEO salaries increasing 1,460% since 1978, compared to 18.1% for the average workers.
Trolls and bullies are a direct outcome of the divide and conquer, keeping people down, angry, and scared.
So how do you handle trolls?
First, big picture. As an activist, keep fighting for change that benefits the many, not just the few.
Second, counteract what the troll has said with one factual statement, then spend one paragraph, written or spoken, as a public teaching moment about the underlying issue and the scientific, data-driven, facts and how to solve the problem. Do not give a troll oxygen by engaging in debate over their lies or misrepresentations. Do not stoop to their level. Do not engage in back and forth, simply a clinically dry factual response and move on.
Third, if it’s a personal attack, threatening, or just slimy, do not engage at all. Simply document the who and what, block, and report.
I do believe the world can become a much better, kinder place. But sometimes that means engaging and calling out the trolls. I remind myself, they must be pretty miserable if all they’ve got is insulting others.
If you are interested in my daily #ActivistTips videos, you can find me at https://www.instagram.com/rwr_4change/