Tackling Internet Trolls | Her Nashville August Issue
The August issue of Her Nashville magazine is out! This month, I give a few tips on how to approach and respond to angry/stupid/snarky/creepy blog post commenters. I know you hate them and want to fight back, but think before you type–and please, don’t stoop to their level. Here’s a teaser:
Don’t Delete
Folks have the right to disagree with you, even if they are snarky and mean-spirited. As long as the comment isn’t a threat, patently offensive, spam, bigoted, libelous, or keeping you awake at night, leave it be. The same criteria apply to newspaper story comment sections; don’t bother asking a paper to take a comment down just because it’s untrue or written by someone who is a complete loon. These are rants from trolls, not statements from the Pope.
Count to 4,756
As bad as the troll’s comment is and despite how angry/hurt/sad it makes you/your company/your mom, it’s not the end of the world. Take a deep breath, step away from the computer, and think before you respond. I know it feels like it, but the entire world at this very moment is NOT actually reading the comment section. Trust me.
And as always, if you have ideas for a column topic, please send’em my way by emailing me at Margie (at) FlackRabbit (dot) com.
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