Mike Cernovich. Allan Smith/Business Insider Prominent pro-Donald Trump Twitter troll Mike Cernovich said he essentially deserved to be called what is considered to be the worst, and favored, insult among the so-called alt-right movement.

That insult is "cuck," a popular expression used by the alt-right, a movement that consists of white nationalists, reactionaries, men's rights activists, and staunch protectionists, among others. "Cuck" is derived from the word "cuckold."

Speaking to Business Insider at last week's Deploraball, Cernovich said being called a "cuck" is "pretty funny" considering how he had launched many similar attacks on people previously.

"It's karma," he said. "I troll, I'm trolled."

"That's the thing," he continued. "That's why when people in the media get trolled, and I'm like, 'Well, when you write about people you can f------ ruin a person's life. You got to own that. So if people want to f--- with you, it's only fair.' I definitely deserve to be trolled."

Cernovich, who gained prominence online for his often controversial pro-Trump commentary, which also included efforts in spreading conspiracies such as PizzaGate and others related to Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton's health, was called a "cuck" by many after he had a falling out with another prominent member of the alt-right, Baked Alaska.

Cernovich targeted Baked Alaska, who also goes by Tim Treadstone (real name is Anthime Gionet), and asked him not to attend the Deploraball for posts he made online about Jewish people. The Deploraball, which took place last week, was the pre-inauguration, Washington, DC, event for the alt-right, and Cernovich was a top organizer.

That prompted Baked Alaska to go on a lengthy Twitter rant against Cernovich, capping off with a roughly 45-minute scorched-earth Periscope video in which he called Cernovich "a huge cuck" and "a massive cuck."



Many others subsequently joined in on the trolling of Cernovich.

The episode showed splits within the alt-right movement, which is unabashedly pro-Trump. Cernovich and others have begun to refer to themselves as the "new right."