Friday 21 February 2014

How to deal with Twitter trolls



The trick with trolls is simple. Don't engage. Thomas Jefferson famously said:
"Nothing gives one person so much advantage over another as to remain always cool and unruffled under all circumstances."
A response is exactly what they want. It means their cruel enterprise has succeeded. Silence and non-response is failure for them. For as Nick Cohen said in The Spectator:
"I’ve noticed on Twitter that when someone responds to mad or sexist abuse, rather than ignoring the abuser or blocking him, there is a perceptible moment of delight when the ranter realises that – at last – he has hit his target and made her notice his existence."
Or, if you must, as we looked at here, you can name and shame those online abusers. A technique suggested and practiced by Mary Beard. She said:
"It is a tough call. I have increasingly opted for name and shame."
In the video above and here Duncan James also spoke about "naming and shaming" Twitter trolls. If the menace and abuse escalates you should contact a family member and the police.

DISCLAIMER: None of the above represents legal advice.

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