Don't Feed the Trolls

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By Emily Jowdh

If you’ve spent any real time beneath the surface of the internet you’ve probably heard the phrase ‘Don’t feed the Trolls’ and it’s probably the best piece of advice you can get, especially when it comes to social media.

Whenever I hear this phrase, I can’t help but imagine a happy-go-lucky adventurer wearing a big smile on their face, and an even bigger bag on their back, being stopped by a mysterious and wizened old man and warned; “No matter what happens…. Never feed the Trolls.” Does that make me the mysterious old man in this story? I suppose it does! Well in that case, take a seat young adventurer, and let me share a little more advice with you before you start your journey into the unpredictable world of social media.

For most of us social media is a way to share thoughts, pictures, and stories with the people we care about the most. You might get Aunty Doreen disagreeing with you, or Uncle Frank being tactless (again!), but usually those would be the most negative things the average adult social media user would encounter*. However, as your online social circle expands to strangers, and you get more followers, the likelihood of interacting with Trolls becomes much higher. You’re also exponentially more likely to encounter offensive, discriminatory, and threatening comments if you are female presenting, a person of colour, or a member of the LGTBQ+ community.

Being a public figure is incredibly challenging online, especially if you’re not a white male. You are putting yourself out there at the mercy of the anonymous public. Some people will love you and some will hate you. I would think very carefully about using yourself to represent your brand as you start to create professional social media accounts as you may receive some unwanted comments. I have a professional account that I use a pseudonym for online. I use it for my podcasting and voice acting work, which involves me putting myself and my face out there as I attempt to promote myself, and it upsets me to think that I am one of the lucky ones, because I’ve only had a few derogatory comments there so far. I know as time goes on and my following grows, that will change, and I’ll have to be prepared for the worst.

It is incredibly important to remember that the internet has given people a way of being able to do all sorts of things under the veil of anonymity. They can say and do the most despicable things without fear of repercussion, or being seen or heard by their peers, and this makes them bold. Who people are online is very different to who they are in person. You want to know who someone truly is? Look through their comment history. It’s a real eye opener! Luckily, when it does happen it’s getting easier to track people down, laws are taking online threats much more seriously, social media platforms are stamping down on offensive activity, and victims can seek out help more easily than before. However, the problem is still not going away any time soon.

What I would suggest is sticking to a faceless brand. Acting online as the organisation and not an individual is going to yield much less trolling in the long run. You may get the odd stupid comment, or someone leaving bad reviews for the sake of it, but you won’t receive the vicious and personal attacks you’d get as a public figure. It’s much safer and less stressful. Honestly, the most we seem to get are spam bots, and other than being annoying, they’re harmless.

Different platforms have different amounts of Trolls too, so if you’re finding you’re inundated then moving to another platform and finding a new community could be a good idea. This is what I’ve discovered the levels are over the years:

• Twitter has a fair number of aggressive Trolls.
• Reddit has a large number of particularly venomous Trolls (beware!).
• Instagram is mostly bots if you’re a white male or an organisation, but for others, the Trolls here can be pretty disgusting and derogatory.
• Facebook Trolls aren’t as frequent, but they’re mostly just angry and want to cause drama.
• LinkedIn has Trolls who don’t realise they’re Trolls, but they aren’t as common.
• Mastodon… I’ve not seen any… yet.

Mastodon is an interesting one. A lot of people are migrating there from Twitter after a few ‘last straws’ and I think it’ll take some time to really see that settle down. We recently moved over there too and are testing the waters, and I’m hopeful that it’ll be a more positive and inclusive space where communities and networks can support each other rather than get pulled apart. You should come over and join us!

But I’m sure you’re desperate to finally know, what you should do if you ever come across a Troll…

It's simple. Don’t feed it.

All this really means is don’t engage. Don’t reply, don’t react, don’t fan the flames, don’t give them the attention they so desperately want nor the satisfaction of knowing they upset you. Easier said than done, I know. But really the best thing to do is ignore it, report it, and block the user.

If you’d like to reach out to us on social media, then you can find us here:

Twitter: @CountrysideJobs
Instagram: @countrysidejobs
Facebook: @CJSJobs
Mastodon here: mastodonapp.uk/@CountrysideJobs
LinkedIn: @Countryside-Jobs-Service

And remember… Don’t feed the Trolls.

*I would like to mention here that cyber-bullying is a very real and serious thing that many children and young adults face from their peers on a regular basis. Recent studies have shown that nearly 50% of children aged between 13 and 17 have experienced some form of cyber-bullying. The form of bullying can range from offensive name-calling, spreading explicit images, all the way to serious threats of bodily harm. So, although I will be basing my points on adult online interactions during this article, this is still an element that I believe deserves attention and is worth including.

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