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The Current.com Guide to Troll Spotting


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// How to Identify a Troll //

Trolls are tricky. They like to cause trouble. That’s it. They like chaos and disorder and they love nothing more than coming into a discussion, leaving a comment that they know is inflammatory and then sitting back and watching the fur fly. Some trolls are obvious, some are sneaky, but they all want the same thing—to wreak havoc.

There are many ways to define a troll—try Googling “troll” and you’ll see what I mean. But when identifying a troll, there are some things you should keep in mind.

Disagreeing with someone is not always troll-like behavior. Also, expressing a minority opinion does not make someone a troll. Not taking the time to upload an avatar, or fill out profile, is not damning evidence of trollhood, either.

On a site like Current, it’s easy to get caught up in the idea that everyone on the site shares a particular ideological viewpoint. But Current isn’t a site just for liberals, or a site just for conservatives. All viewpoints and opinions are welcome here (as long as everyone plays by our community standards, as always) even if they aren’t always the most popular.

// Defeating Trolls in One Easy Step //

Don’t feed the trolls.

Really, that’s it. The best thing to do when you run across is to take a deep breath and back away from the keyboard. Trolls love drama, and the easiest way to make them go away is not to give them any. Go for a walk, read a book, pick up your knitting, practice meditation, hit a punching bag—whatever you do to calm down, now is a great time for it.

If someone is violating our community standards, please use the flag button to report them to staff, and we’ll deal with it. Troll-wrangling is part of what we do, so let us deal with them.

It may be tempting to call out a troll in the comments, but please don’t. Troll is a slippery definition, and chances are that’s going to cause a lot of heated discussion—exactly what a troll wants.

So remember. Don’t feed the trolls.

Steph
Online Community Team

Flickr Photo: Troll in Eden shop, Hveragerði by chillihead http://www.flickr.com/photos/chillihead/729241192/
sgwhites

29 responses // The Current.com Guide to Troll Spotting

  • no feeding trolls indeed
    lfm
    • lfm
    • 3 months ago
  • @CarolynGillis -- thanks for the comment.

    Just FYI, that link isn't actually an example of troll behavior. Only two people have voted on that story, so that's why it's being held at 50%.

    I think one of the points of Stephanie's post was that just because something doesn't meet our expectations does not mean that a troll is to blame. Sometimes a lack of movement in voting percentages is simply due to the fact that no one else is voting on the story.

    I hope this helps clarify.

    Thanks,
    Mario

    Online Community Team
    mario_a
    1 response to this
  • It's sad how people are sociopaths with the online cloak of immunity and choose a troll as their avatar.
    handshakeheartbreak
  • Sometimes its so hard not to respond to some people. Ah well I guess I'll just take a deep breath when I see some comments.
    Yoshi1
  • I've noticed some -- or at least one -- of the most virulent trolls on Current.com have disappeared. Hooray! Good post Steph! I also find it useful to remind other Current.com users not to get sucked in to feeding trolls.
    Julie_Soller
  • FEED THE TROLL UNTIL they burst like little babies in a microvawe!!!!






    totally didnt meant that ..
    kewal91
    2 responses to this
  • I don't know where does being a Troll start and free speech stop? Saying something just to get something started is what we all do to some extent on some level or another. There's always going to be the occasional idiot but that's what makes it fun. It sharpens the skills to do tactical battle with some of these clowns and send them scrambling to Google to figure out what you're talking about.
    eldamon
    1 response to this
  • I'll add that Trolls tend to use insulting words like, "RETARD!", in Caps when sending private messages to intimidate someone they've chosen to attack into leaving.
    I've been ignoring them while using the "Block" feature to insure that they never get another useless message through to me.
    huntre
  • haha. I love that there's a link at the top to come straight here. Neat.
    J_Jammer
  • A troll trap, or a leading link to information on what a troll is, I'm not a troll but wow this is very informative.
    marpunk
  • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C8jT9FVIVSU
    I could not disagree more with this thread's premise.

    I am 'tricky' and love to cause trouble. I like chaos and disorder and most people view my thoughts and opinions to be quite inflammatory. I aspire to wreak havoc - it certainly beats complacency / conformity anyday of the week.

    I don't consider myself, George Carlin, or Bill O'Reilly to be trolls. Just antagonists..which is what this thread appears to describe - someone who values instigating and igniting otherwise dull conversation^

    http://current.com/items/88861355_because_trolls_are_hu...

    All viewpoints and opinions are not welcome here@currnt...not even close.....My experience of the community-at-large (which i pay very close attention to) is quite intolerant and surprisingly vicious toward conservative / unpopular voices.

    // How to Love a Troll in Three Easy Steps //

    1) Feed your troll coherent, thoughtful, unemotional responses ...bonus for credible* citations.

    2) Be overly-tolerant and accepting of your troll's viewpoints/antics. Step outside your little box for just a second and allow yourself to think and feel like said troll...no matter how uncomfortable

    3) Celebrate the differences you share with your troll and try to understand why they are being trolls, or ...more importantly - WHY you allow their trolling to disturb you.

    p.s. the aforementioned rules also work well for dog training.

    Everyone loves drama, and the easiest way to make drama is by getting upset over someone else's words.

    Go for a run, burn a book, practice levitation, open the bag, take a few hits—whatever you need to do to get all worked up and let that troll really have it.

    Perhaps a little less 'Troll-wrangling'... and more effort spent being real Internet Cowboys/girls - roping in that USDA-choice content before it gets sent out to pasture, butchered, and repackaged (now i'm just being a troll :)

    Give in to your temptation - engage your Trolls in heated confrontation...you never know - something Magic^ could happen!

    "While wisdom is ethereal, knowledge is merely material and transitory in nature. Thus, the wise man should not idolize his knowledge as sacred, but instead be willing to scrap every shred of it in lieu of new information which contradicts it." - Francis Thurman
    smorrisey
    4 responses to this
  • just send pm's. when people communicate one-on-one i believe they are likely to be more honest.
    bishopobispo
  • admits: sometimes I drop a few bread crumbs for the trolls to nibble on.
    oly90808
  • Man - its so tempting to troll on this post. Though I'm really glad you guys put this up.
    ipodrulz
  • I am a self-identified Troll, but I only come out from under my bridge for very specific reasons. I will troll any post on current.com that has bad sources and has little or no credibility. I take this website seriously and I don't want it to become a joke, so expect my troll-comments if you use a conspiracy theory website as a source. I also troll Ron Paul posts because they have trolled us. Paul supporters troll youtube and current and its time they had a taste of their own medicine, besides, all that I do is make them aware of Paul's conservative Christian fundamentalist beliefs which conflict with the Constitution. If that makes me a troll, then a troll I am.
    Colonial_Zombie
    1 response to this
  • I remember back when message board postings were primarily at AOL, Yahoo and other listservs and it was the trolls (before the spammers) that have driven honest, thoughtful discussion participants away from discussions. Sure, I don't mind drama every now and then. But the average person willing to participate in online discussions these days do not have the time, energy, and sanity to put up with "trolling." Bringing trolling to the attention of all serves as a reminder that in the end. trolling solves nothing. It just drives away the "better" discussion participants. I would rather engage in thoughtful, intelligent discussions about subjects I either agree or disagree on, than "fight" with trolls. Remember: Arguing solves NOTHING. NOTHING at all. It just makes people feel worse.
    wisegrrl
  • Trolls are not devil's advocates. They exist only to wind people up for their own amusement. Clever ones can be amusing but many are just immature and witless while some get down right creepy in their obsessions with certain victims. They're basically negative people who thrive off of negativity and causing people distress.
    SamuraiDave
  • I have always wondered what kind of person becomes a troll?? And why?? Kind of like those people who leave excrement all over public restrooms...who ARE these people???
    Becky6378
    1 response to this
  • http://yvettesbridalformal.com/troll.html
    fountaingoats

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