THE TROLL HUNTER
FOR EACH KIND OF GAME, THERE IS A SPECIFIC TIME OF DAY WHEN IT’S BEST TO HUNT. FOR INSTANCE, THE OPTIMAL TIME TO CATCH A WILD TURKEY IS JUST AFTER DAYBREAK. MOST WHITE-TAIL DEER ARE REGULARLY ACTIVE AT DAWN OR DUSK. COYOTES, RACCOONS, AND FERAL HOGS ARE USUALLY NABBED AT NIGHT. ONLINE TROLLS, ON THE OTHER HAND, ARE PLENTIFUL AND RIPE FOR THE KILL AT ANY HOUR OF THE DAY, ANY TIME OF THE YEAR. WHEN IT COMES TO THOSE SOCIAL MEDIA SABOTEURS WHO STOKE DIVISION, SOW DISINFORMATION, AND SEEK TO UNDERMINE POLITICAL DISCOURSE AND, INCREASINGLY, DEMOCRACY ITSELF, IT’S ALWAYS OPEN SEASON—EVEN ON JOSH RUSSELL’S DAY OFF.
The systems analyst and programmer at IUPUI is spending time away from work on this sunny Tuesday in mid-October to be with his two sons, who are on fall break from school. But quality time with the kids will have to wait: Russell thinks he’s caught the scent of his prey.
While flipping through channels on the living room TV, Russell and his wife happen upon the live broadcast of Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg giving a speech about freedom of expression to an auditorium full of students at Georgetown University. This amuses Russell, given what he knows about Facebook’s role in the spread of disinformation, particularly leading up to the 2016 presidential election. “It’s a shitshow,” Russell says of the speech.
Unable to resist, Russell pulls out his phone and immediately checks Zuckerberg’s own Facebook page, which is airing the speech with real-time commentary. Russell notices that among the expected jeers and call-outs of Zuckerberg’s hypocrisy, there are strings of unrelentingly positive comments—all using the same basic wording, tone, and structure.
Chandresh H Kishor: “Thanks Mark for providing such a wonderful platform. Stay blessed.”
Chinyere Christopher: “Thanks for the creation of this wonderful platform.”
Aarthy Viven: “Dear Mark, your love story was amazing. Thanks for the wonderful social platform…”
Punam Pajput Kaushik: “Thank you sir creative and such a amazing platform.”
The recognition of this pattern excites Russell—it’s usually the first sign of a troll. He eagerly toggles over to Twitter, where he posts screen grabs of the suspicious comments and hurriedly thumbs out an alert to his almost 13,000 followers. The chat on the live Zuckerberg stream, Russell tweets, “is really
