Tag Archive | Charlotte Dawson

For Whom The Post Trolls

Sep10

Once again the great troll debate airs it’s ugly head as an NRL footballer who recently lost his mother was sent derogatory comments about her.  This follows quickly behind the recent troll war which left celebrity Charlotte Dawson in hospital and cries from many quarters for “accountability” for the actions many faceless people take when they subject not only celebrities and sporting people but the average Joe to harassment and abuse.

The Troll Mentality

Firstly, let’s dissect exactly what a troll is……a troll is a person who either doesn’t like something you say, doesn’t like your achievements or simply wants to get noticed so says something totally stupid to get a reaction….generally they will have a faceless account on either twitter or facebook and use that account to post hurtful and hateful messages to people for no apparent reason other than “because they can”  Other titles include keyboard warriors, faceless people, gutless wonders.

So how do you STOP trolls?  Here’s a few tips which will help.

1. Do not feed the trolls…..the purpose of a troll is to get attention and illicit a response…when you don’t give one they stop…(yes it’s that simple)

2. Report and block the troll….don’t argue with them…don’t tell them…I’m going to block you!  Just do it.  Announcing you are going to do it only infuriates the troll more.

3. If you are on twitter and one of your followers leaps to your defense send them a DM telling them “I’ve got this” having multiple people arguing only creates a mob mentality.

4. Step away from the computer…have a nice cup of tea and watch a bit of telly.  It’s amazing how quickly things cool down when you aren’t there to keep them going.

Another thing people do with trolls is they name and shame….for example retweeting the comment for all their followers to see (eg.Charlotte Dawson)  in the hope it will shame the person into shutting up….this rarely works as it’s a bit like poking a beehive and hoping the bees will stay inside and just let the honey pour out. Plus it’s exactly the reaction the troll wants.

Charlotte for instance, went from being told to go hang herself to having photos of pills, dismembered bodies and nooses sent to her…all because she went on TV and exposed the trolls.  This went on for over 48 hours and it was RELENTLESS . The more TV appearances she made the more trolls who came out to play. It was a lose-lose situation.

So what accountability is there….are there are “real” laws to protect us from text on a computer screen?   When nameless people attack us by insulting our mother or our children or our lifestyle does that warrant legal action?   In my opinion No.  See, I believe as adults we have the choice of how we deal with trolls.  The bottom line is don’t feed them.  Don’t give them the oxygen they need to fuel the flames.

Consider the alternative….where someone else decides what is acceptable for you to say and see and type and read.  Where is the line in the sand drawn?  Who decides what’s acceptable and what’s not.   I’m thinking death threats would be a good line to draw.  But then again I’m thick skinned :)

When I started using the internet we didn’t even have web browsers….we used something called Fido Net and it was more message board based, the arguments back then were called flame wars…because people fanned the flames by giving their two cents worth.  I learnt long ago to not fan the flames.

Final piece of advise

I’m all a Twitter

Jan11

I'm a Twit

I have had a twitter account for AGES…..I think since 2008 but I never really used it because I just didn’t want to see the crap that people like Ashton Kutcher etc. had to say.

It the past 4 months I set out on an expedition of sorts to see what Twitter was all about and you know what it’s a real eye opener.  There are lots of REAL people out there.   Most are a lot more highbrow that those I meet on facebook who are basically simple folk who want to play games with you….the idea of twitter is you invade someone’s tweet and comment on something they say and hope they reply back.

After a while you get followers who come and go I guess based on if they like what you have to say.   I have met some truly wonderful people who have become part of my daily tweeting routine.  Please allow me to plug them for a moment because they deserve it.. People like  DaniG88,   thisisScoMan, PupsyWupsy, Socrates1975 and timotheospeter are just regular folk like me…our common bond being our love of The Project on TV so we tend to joke around with their resident twit…we have in fact bonded and I discovered two of them live less then 20kms from me…Go Figure right?

There is also the other side…the “Celebrity” tweeters.  Now I guess what you consider a celebrity varies in line with your personal taste….I found myself following many Australian comedy people, the sunrise people, the project people and various people I just found fun and interesting and who I thought had something to say or that I could say to them.

There are some truly wonderful Aussie out there who represent us….and a few Kiwis but more of that later :)  There are also quite a few international people who really appreciate that you are a “fan”

And guess what they are just real people like you and I…..

I have tweeted regularly with Melissa Hoyer, Wendy Harmer, Charlotte Dawson, Sam McMillan, Jules Schiller, Amanda Woods, Michael C Hall (Dexter) and yes even my idol Richard Gere replied to one of my tweets.

Let me say this about how unaffected these people are.

Charlotte Dawson remembered me having an accident and asked how I was doing and to let her know how things were going….I was truly touched as I am sure she has a lot more than me tweeting her

Wendy Harmer and I have often discussed articles on her Hoopla site which I am also now addicted to.

I tried to help Amanda Woods find a Christmas tree and Michael C Hall gave me a shoutout on my birthday…I felt kinda special

I also saw the power of the people.  When Kylie Sandilands made his comments about a female journo it was the power of twitter than had people contacting organisations to withdraw their sponsorship from his radio show…..and they did….it was the first time I had ever see the voice of the people actually achieving something in real time….I was and am proud of us for taking a stand.

So in nutshell this is what twitter is…it connects you to people you have things in common with, it allows you to peek inside the lives of people you admire, it gives you a voice against things you don’t want, it gives your creative brain as workout when being clever with the latest hashtag but most of all I think it helps us realise we are all the same…we are all just people….some are arseholes and some aren’t too bad….hell I even follow Shane Warne and you know what…he’s not a bad bloke and he loves Ms Elizabeth.

So if you think that you would like to embrace the twitterverse I highly recommend it….it gives you a voice…allows you an opinion and makes you understand the power we individuals as a group can have….so try it….I am @voodoo47 signing off

Why #vilekyle will win

Nov27

Kyle and Jackie O

OK so there has been debate going for nearly a week about Kyle Sandilands and his behaviour earlier this week.

There have been numerous articles, blogs, TV discussion etc on the topic so I don’t feel I have to rehash old news but this is why Kyle will win.   See whilst the sponsors walk away and show their support of “We the People” really he’s got one more week of radio to go then he’s off air anyway till the New Year.   Ratings period will be over so maybe he just wants to take off a week early.

Kyle has never been one to think first and talk later (and no I am not defending him)  He likes to stir and he likes to get a reaction.  Most of the time we shake our heads and state how outraged we are but are we truly outraged or are we feeding the beast?

Interestingly whilst the petition  to get Kyle off the air now has over 20,000 signatures, the one to keep him on http://twitition.com/ipcyv has 94.   What does this tell Austereo, the sponsors and people in general?   I think we as the silent majority have finally decided NOT to be silent and to use the power of the people to rid ourselves of someone who has continually crossed our boundaries of good and decent but it STILL isn’t working.

Kyle states he has “freedom of speech” this is probably right considering he’s in the US but we do not have that here in Australia.  We have defamation laws and Apprehended Violence Orders.  I would urge Alison Stephenson to seek both of these options to show just how much “freedom of speech” Kyle has in this country.

I still can’t understand that Austereo kowtows to this man.   But, like I said, in another week he will be off the air for a month.   By the time that’s up many of us would have forgotten it and moved on to the next outrage…until he does it again….and of course he will..ask Geoff Field, Fiona Cahill, Charlotte  Dawson, Jessica Mouboy. Ricki Lee Coulter and  Kate DeAraugo to name a few.   But in the end he will have won because next year he will be doing exactly what he’s doing now…laughing all the way to the bank.