Monday 19 June 2017

The dark side of the internet.

"They do it because they want to get a reaction. They want to see me lash out and it all feeds into this sick and twisted entertainment value to them." Blogger

The digital revolution has transformed our world. Never in human history have we been more connected to each other in ways that would have seemed unimaginable only a decade ago. But with the rise of social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter, and a smartphone in virtually every pocket, the internet bullies known as trolls are only ever a click, tap or swipe away.

"We want to make them cry. We love to make them cry." Troll

Instead of bringing people together, trolls use the internet to target those they disagree with by provoking, harassing and threatening them.

"It may be that the internet has unleashed a kind of dark demon, within millions of people out there in the general public." Psychiatrist

On Monday night Four Corners takes you into the dark side of the internet to explore the rise of cyber trolls.

"They send things to my home. It terrifies me to think what they could do, if they wanted to, knowing exactly where I live, knowing where my children go to school." Blogger

Many trolls go to great lengths to try and hide their identity and as the program explores, psychiatrists believe this is helping to propel the appalling behaviour.

"Anonymity seems to be a very important factor on the internet, in that it seems to make people less inhibited about doing nasty things." Psychiatrist

One self-proclaimed hard core troll outlines the trolling landscape and boasts about his extensive conquests, all while hiding behind a cloak of anonymity.

"I've been associated with all kinds of organised trolling groups...The Internet presented something that was never available to us before." Troll

And some of the trolls are not who you'd expect.

"The trolls and the really dangerous people that I attract are, themselves, mothers and have small children at home." Blogger

We meet Britain's most notorious troll, jailed for sending threatening tweets, and a campaigner in Canada as he goes on trial after a confrontation on Twitter.

"If you're hurt, if the truth hurts you, it's not my problem, because I'm just telling the truth." Canadian Activist

The prosecution of trolls raises uncomfortable questions about how far our commitment to freedom of expression goes. Activists are warning of an Orwellian future of thought police.

"Trolling is a free speech issue and if you aren't free to hate someone then you're not free... If we are serious about freedom of speech, then we have to allow people to say hateful, obnoxious, racist, sexist things." Magazine Editor

RISE OF THE TROLLS, from Canadian film-maker Jonathan Baltrusaitis and presented by Sarah Ferguson, goes to air on Monday 19th June at 8.30pm EDT. It is replayed on Tuesday 20th June at 10.00am and Wednesday 21st at 11pm. It can also be seen on ABC NEWS channel on Saturday at 8.00pm AEST, and on ABC iview.

Background Information

SUPPORT SERVICES

If you or anyone you know needs help or you want to report cyber bullying here are some resources:

ACORN - Australian Cybercrime Online Reporting Network - https://www.acorn.gov.au/

Beyond Blue | 1300 22 46 36 - https://www.beyondblue.org.au/

Bully Zero Australia Foundation: Cyber Bullying | 1800 028 559 Emergency Helpline - http://bzaf.org.au/cyber-bullying/

eSafety | Government resource providing online safety eduction and a complaints system to help children if they experience serious cyberbullying. - https://www.esafety.gov.au/

Headspace | 1800 650 890 - https://headspace.org.au/

Kids Helpline | 1800 551 800 - https://kidshelpline.com.au/

Lifeline | 13 11 14 - https://www.lifeline.org.au

MensLine Australia | 1300 789 978 - https://www.mensline.org.au/

Suicide Call Back Service | 1300 659 467 https://www.suicidecallbackservice.org.au/

RELATED READING

Google and Facebook face penalties if they don't stop online hate | Guardian UK | 14 Jun 2017 - Theresa May and French president agree to create laws to punish failure to remove jihadist propaganda from websites. https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/jun/13/google-and-facebook-face-penalties-if-they-dont-stop-online-hate

This Baker Makes Internet Trolls Eat Their Words - Literally | NPR | 12 Jun 2017 - New York City baker Kat Thek is the founder of Troll Cakes, a bakery that sends trolls cakes with their nasty comments written in frosting. http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2017/06/12/529747366/this-baker-makes-internet-trolls-eat-their-words-literally

Australia 10 years behind in cyberbullying arms race, eSafety Commissioner says | ABC News | 25 May 2017 - Australia's eSafety Commissioner says there has been a 60 per cent increase in cyberbullying cases in the past year and Australia is "about 10 years behind in educating our children". https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-05-25/australia-10-years-behind-in-cyberbullying-arms-race/8558158

Revealing the secrets of one of Australia's worst online trolls | SMH | 16 Apr 2017 - Meet the worst online trolls in Australia. http://www.smh.com.au/national/investigations/revealing-the-secrets-of-one-of-australias-worst-online-trolls-20170413-gvklv8.html

Trolls Are Winning the Internet, Technologists Say | The Atlantic | 29 Mar 2017 - And they're pushing the rest of us toward a "Potemkin internet," a mere shell of the web we know today. https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2017/03/guys-its-time-for-some-troll-theory/521046/

The social media problems gripping our girls | ABC News | 18 Mar 2017 - Girls as young as eight are now grappling with social media's sinister side, experts warn. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-03-18/social-media-problems-gripping-girls/8356008

Women troll on dating apps just as often as men | The Conversation | 13 Mar 2017 - 'We found that individuals who trolled on Tinder scored significantly higher on dark traits such as psychopathy and sadism.' https://theconversation.com/women-troll-on-dating-apps-just-as-often-as-men-72736

Jon Ronson: how the online hate mob set its sights on me | Guardian UK | 21 Dec 2015 - When Ronson wrote about the injustice of Justine Sacco's trial by Twitter, he found that he too became a target of an internet witch hunt. How did we become unpaid shaming interns for companies that don't care about us? https://www.theguardian.com/media/2015/dec/20/social-media-twitter-online-shame

Cyber bullying: Father crusades to stop bullies after daughter's suicide following Facebook tirade | ABC 7.30 | 18 Aug 2015 - 18-year-old Jessica Cleland took her own life after being cyber bullied on Facebook. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-08-17/father-crusades-to-stop-cyber-bullies-after-daughters-suicide/6703668

Internet Trolls Really Are Horrible People | Slate | 14 Feb 2014 - Narcissistic, Machiavellian, psychopathic, and sadistic. http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/climate_desk/2014/02/internet_troll_personality_study_machiavellianism_narcissism_psychopathy.html

WATCH RELATED 4 CORNERS PROGRAMS

In Google We Trust | 9 Sep 2013 - Australians are among the most technically connected in the world, but do we know where our data goes and how it's being used? Watch Online