Trolling is Wrong

Once again, I will extend my thanks to Wrichcirw. Just a quick note about my arguments: I will not be arguing about the goings-on of the debate that was the impetus for this one, I will not be arguing any specific method for combating trolling, and I will not be arguing against joke debates which do not have the malevolent intent behind them required for trolling. Instead, I will simply be arguing that trolling is, on balance, an unethical practice which should be curbed. Observation: The resolution is not DDO-specific. Thus, we're talking about trolling as it occurs in a broader range of internet forums, including sites like DDO. Contention One: Trolls tend to target vulnerable users and sites. Trolls can cause a "loss of trust...in a discussion group disrupted by trolling. The seriousness of this effect is dependent upon the nature of the group. Groups that deal with emotionally charged and sensitive topics...are more at risk than lighthearted ones. Some participants opt not to post to groups following incidents of loss of trust. In this regard, vulnerable and inexperienced computer-mediated communication (CMC) participants not only are more likely to be targeted by trolling, but also may be more adversely affected by it. New users tend disproportionately to be women, the young, and other nontraditional computer users." [1] Contention Two: Trolling has negative psychological impacts, especially when it becomes a form of cyber abuse. Trolls "typically hide behind the mask of anonymity that the Internet provides by using fictitious screen names. Because abusers may lack face-to-face contact with the individuals being persecuted, they may not know the level of duress that is produced by their misconduct. Therefore, they are unlikely to experience feelings of regret, sympathy, or compassion toward the victim. Harmful messages intended to undermine the reputation of a victim can be far more damaging than face-to-face altercations. Instead of remaining a private matter or event known by only a small group, text or photographs can be communicated to a large audience in a short time." [2] Contention Three: Trolling can have impacts outside of online forums where it occurs. In one example, a troll's abusive remarks "generated in excess of 3,500 responses (an average of 1 response every 160 minutes for a whole year) and the greatest coup of all was when an innocent american [sic] student lost not only her internet account but was also expelled from high school for abuse of the computer systems. Somehow she had managed to get the blame for causing the troll." [1] While this is only one instance of trolling's outside repercussions, the source I cite also explains how when sites are trolled upon, users can feel bombarded, and be left without a "safe space" to vent their feelings. Contention Four: There are real examples of disruptive trolling on the internet, including several on DDO. Besides Anonymouse, whose posts were generally agreed to constitute trolling, there was also izbo. I was not here for that, but I have seen references to him, and I looked it up. His actions seemed to not only cause distress among many members, but they also caused several members of the site to deactivate there accounts in order to shield themselves from his attacks. While some level of freedom of speech ought to be permitted, a line has to be drawn somewhere. No one should have so much free speech that they can harass, bully, and intimidate someone with impunity. As one of my sources writes, "the asynchronous, distributed nature of online discussion forums allows those motivated to disrupt discussions to have far-reaching effects. These practices, while clearly problematic, are nonetheless widespread and often tolerated, due in part to the pervasiveness on the Internet of civil libertarian values that consider abusive speech a manifestation of individual freedom of expression." [1] More examples of trolling can be found in my third source. Contention Five: Other harms of trolling. "Trolls can be costly in several ways. A troll can disrupt the discussion on a newsgroup, disseminate bad advice, and damage the feeling of trust in the newsgroup community. Furthermore, in a group that has become sensitized to trolling " where the rate of deception is high " many honestly na"ve questions may be quickly rejected as trollings. This can be quite off-putting to the new user who upon venturing a first posting is immediately bombarded with angry accusations. Even if the accusation is unfounded, being branded a troll is quite damaging to one's online reputation." [3] Additionally, "effects included the disruption of discussion and waste of bandwidth for a year." [1] Conclusion: Based on the foregoing analysis, I would posit that trolling is unethical under either a utilitarian or deontological calculus. It is therefore best that it be impermissible. With that, I affirm the topic and await Con's responses. Sources: 1 - http://www.tandfonline.com... 2 - http://www.tandfonline.com... 3 - http://en.wikipedia.org...(Internet)