This article was published on the site of culpanews Thursday 09/05/2024 and on the site of moneyview Monday 13/05/2024
The concept of the Troll has evolved significantly since its inception in the late 1990s. Even compared to 2016, which was declared by The New Yorker as “The Year of Political Trolling,” the landscape of social media networks (Facebook-Instagram, Twitter, blogs, etc.) has undergone a significant transformation.
From solitary, strange, and irritable individuals, trolls have transformed into organized groups and become powerful tools in the hands of governments, political entities, and various organizations. These organized groups employ a range of tactics to disrupt online public discourse, interfere with democratic processes, promote hate, and influence election outcomes.
The Evolution of Trolling
The term “Trolling” is broadly defined as the harassment, criticism, and confrontation of individuals and organizations through sharp, ironic, irrelevant, or offensive comments, as well as through public irony and blatant defamation of users online. Most social media users have encountered trolls at least once, and some of us have had many negative experiences from online encounters with them.
Internet trolls come in four major variations:
- Memetic trolls aiming for humor
- Harmless trolls with low-quality comments
- Argumentative trolls challenging comments without serious arguments
- Political trolls whose sole mission is misinformation and escalating online political discourse
However, the issue of Political trolls has become a massive and sometimes dangerous tool in online political communication and beyond, aiming to distort, pollute, and drown out truth and political correctness. Its impact on political communication is substantial and always detrimental to the quality of political discourse. Therefore, it is necessary to mention some points to keep in mind when discussing political trolling.
Political trolling ranges from personal amusement to fully developed campaigns by governments, political opponents, and adversaries. For example, Russian trolls have worked overtime to support the Kremlin’s external interests, from the annexation of Crimea to the U.S. elections. In the Philippines, trolls are extensively used to win presidential elections, while in Venezuela, citizens can sign up to become trolls in exchange for food vouchers.
In Europe, Hungarian government trolls target dissenters of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. In Poland, trolls were used to spread hate against the LGBTQI community, to challenge strikes, and to undermine the credibility of Polish public television critics. In Turkey, trolls created by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) even have the same name – AK-trolls.
Despite their different origins, the primary goal of political trolls remains constant:
- To distract public attention from pressing social issues
- To undermine online dialogue on popular social media networks by spreading false news and promoting division and polarization among political and social groups
Carlos Guimarães Pinto, former leader of the Portuguese Liberal Initiative party, emphasizes that political trolling often targets specific issues that may not be so significant but touch sensitive social chords for the public and politicians. “Trolls aim to cast a shadow of doubt on reality and steer public discussion towards less important areas,” Pinto says.
Recognizing Different Trolling Tactics
At its core, trolling has a wide range from the most innocent troll to the ‘militant’, meaning it can range from funny memes to incredibly dangerous and harmful-toxic activity. How can we recognize different types of trolling online?
- When they bombard social media posts (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, Blog, etc.) with a multitude of comments seeking unnecessary explanations.
- When they use aggressive language, start personal attacks, or hurl offensive comments to provoke emotional or political reactions.
- When they comment or post with the aim of irony and distortion of the truth for cyberbullying purposes.
As trolling methods evolve and become more sophisticated, it is important to recognize these tactics and be prepared to deal with them. Only through understanding and awareness can we protect our political discourse from the negative impacts of political trolling, which tends to become a major factor in the social and political life of our country. It is good to understand the nature and mission of the troll phenomenon so that we are ready to follow some of the tips below when we “meet” one on our online journey.
- Do not react emotionally: Avoid reacting with anger or frustration to unwanted troll comments. This can encourage further reactions.
- Ignore them: Often, ignoring the troll is the best response. Simply do not respond to their comments and continue the discussion with other users.
- Respond with politeness: If you decide to respond, do so politely and respectfully. By providing logical arguments and avoiding provocation, you can reverse the situation.
- Report them to moderators: If the troll violates the rules of the specific forum or platform, you can report them to the moderators for action.
- Protect yourself: Ensure that you protect your dignity and do not let unwanted comments affect your self-esteem. Recognize that troll comments often have more to do with them than with you.
By keeping the above in mind the next time we start our online stroll, we will be ready when we encounter this particular neighbor, so their voices and comments do not affect us.
