Social media’s hoaxes and trolls

By Rey Gamboa (The Philippine Star), November 1, 2016

We live in a totally different world these days where conmen do not necessarily have to personally interact with their victims and gangsters are not always gun-toting and knife-wielding.

Such new realities are an unavoidable part of today’s life with the advent of the digital world and the interaction of its continuously growing faithful army of netizens in what we now call as social media.

Arguably, a big turning point in the power of this new estate came about with the success of Facebook and Twitter, the former now with over 1.7 billion followers, and the latter drawing in an average of 320 million active users a month.

Much as we would want to think that these new ways of human interaction are fun and entertaining in a wholesome way, or have become channels for advocacies that speak of idealism and the admirable traits that we usually associate with humanity’s good, they have taken a different flavor.

Today, using Facebook or any of the popular social media channels like Instagram and Twitter can turn into an ugly, scary, threatening, and bullying environment where we may encounter undesirable traits that our mothers had taught us never to indulge in.

Fake news

How often have we come across fake news that we passed on, liked or shared with our friends, and which in turn, have similarly been spread around with their friends — only to realize much later that it was all one big joke or lie.

Unfortunately, it is not just our individual reputation that’s been “tarnished” by the exposed gullibility of having passed on hoax news, and ultimately having been used. Often, it is at the expense of someone whose integrity has been the target of a systematic campaign of discredit.

It is frightening how fake news are being echoed and re-echoed, so much so that they are transformed “the truth,” sometimes never to be corrected in the minds of those that have read it, and to be passed on to more victims.

Pack hunting

Then, there is the uglier side of social media, one that has been manipulated to expose the meanness of the human persona, or the extent by which one can sell one’s self to destroy other people. Sadly, there is no single redeemable value in being a troll.

Yes, trolls are the bullies of today’s digital world, whose famed unreasonableness and viciousness have evoked grave fear among even the most seasoned advocacy warriors. So just think of how much scared an ordinary netizen would feel under a barrage of hostile verbal attacks.

When novelist and playwright Edward Bulwer-Lytton in 1839, in his historical play Cardinal Richelieu, wrote “the pen is mightier than the sword,” he had no inkling of just how lethal this ink-spewing implement would be almost two centuries hence.

To be the target of organized and amplified attacks for almost anything — from being fat, a woman, a believer, or feeling depressed, or even accidentally responding to controversial subject — could draw one into a cauldron of boiling hate enough to be figuratively cooked alive.

This phenomenon — that thrives on social media’s avowed policy to keep its channels largely uncensored — has bred a new force of terrifying netizens thriving on pack hunting. Some are paid to do so, others simply join in for the pleasure of the kill.

Trolls love every minute of their online freedom, and are learning new ways to gain even more strength. It’s a new culture that has gained alarming acceptance from others, like doing things for lulz laughs, swatting (calling in the SWAT team of trolls to squash a undesirable netizen), or doxxing (revealing the target’s address and other personal info).

Check out facts

In the chaos that has ensued in this new order, the collective of those who believe in moral righteousness is still trying to find its bearings. But there are already signs that, as cliché as this may sound, the truth will prevail.

If before it was easier to spread lies on Facebook, more and more people are realizing that they have to check “breaking news” first before dragging their cursors (or fingers) to the like or share button – and they are learning that checking for accuracy is something quite painless to do.

Snopes.com, one of the more popular sites these days that deploys debunkers on online rumormongering posts, states that the best way to avoid getting duped by false news is to be armed with a healthy dose of skepticism. In other words, don’t always believe in posts that you may receive, and check these out first before doing anything.

More importantly, after doing a few searches on what seems to be earth-shaking news (like the White House canceling all of Obama’s appearances at Hillary Clinton’s campaign events), politely attach any disclaimers that will definitely counter the misused post.

You’d be surprised at how quickly such misleading stories are dissipated by these simple actions of checking out facts and disclaiming those that are not true.

Dousing troll fire

Dealing with trolls, on the other hand, require more ingenuity and perseverance by the rest of the netizen world, especially those who feel abused and opt not to take things sitting down. No, this doesn’t mean that you will fight fire with fire.

The oft-repeated and sage advice is to douse troll activity with a handful of useful interventions, including keeping your wits intact, maintaining a good disposition, and not being confrontational.

Surprisingly, Facebook — the platform whence trolls thrive best next to Twitter — has a number of features that allow the object of a troll attack to be subdued. Check out the increasing number of websites that give sensible advice.

New apps are also being developed that target isolating and eliminating trolls. Communities and companies are also coming up with their own ethical codes, akin to self-policing measures, to ward off trolls.

Simply, if faced with lies and attacks on your cyberspace, there are now ways of dealing with them and surviving with your dignity intact. Who knows, the old order that we once knew may be back to rule our world, perhaps in even better fashion.