Trolling is a term used to describe the act of deliberately posting inflammatory, offensive, or otherwise provocative content online with the purpose of eliciting an emotional response from other users. The term can be used to describe the act itself, or the person who is carrying it out.
Trolling is often done in order to provoke a reaction from other users, or to simply get attention. In some cases, trolling can be a form of harassment or cyberbullying. It is important to remember that not all offensive or provocative content is considered trolling – it is only considered trolling if the poster is deliberately trying to cause an emotional reaction in others.
What is trolling in social media?
Trolling is a term used to describe a wide range of online behaviours, from deliberately provoking others to posting offensive or inflammatory content for the purpose of causing upset or disruption. It can be difficult to define exactly what constitutes trolling, as what one person may see as harmless banter may be considered trolling by someone else. However, there are some common characteristics of trolling behaviour, which include:
- Posting inflammatory or offensive content for the purpose of causing upset or disrupting normal discussion
- Making deliberately provocative or controversial comments in order to provoke a reaction from others
- Deliberately provoking or annoying other users in order to get a rise out of them
- Making deliberately inflammatory or offensive statements in order to cause arguments or divisions among a group of users
Trolling can take many different forms, and can occur in both online and offline contexts. It is important to remember that not all online disagreement or conflict is trolling – it is only considered trolling if the person or persons involved are doing so with the deliberate intention of causing upset or disruption.
What is an example of trolling? There are many examples of trolling, but one recent and high-profile example is the case of the "Grizzly Man" YouTube user. This user posted a series of videos in which he pretended to be a bear, and made numerous false and misleading claims about bear behavior. He also made death threats against other YouTube users. This resulted in a great deal of confusion and distress, particularly among children who were watching the videos.
Why do they call it trolling?
The word "trolling" is used in a variety of different ways, but it originally referred to a fishing technique in which bait is dragged behind a boat in order to attract fish. The term was first used in this context in the early 1800s, and it wasn't until the mid-1900s that it began to be used in relation to online behavior.
There are a few different theories about how the term came to be used in relation to online behavior. One theory is that it was started by people who were trying to deliberately disrupt online conversations (much like how a fisherman would drag a bait behind a boat to attract fish). Another theory is that the term was adopted by people who were simply trying to be funny or provocative in online discussions. Regardless of how the term started, it's now used to describe a wide range of online behavior, from simply trying to stir up trouble to more malicious activities like harassment and cyberbullying.
What's another word for trolling?
There is no one-word answer to this question, as "trolling" is not a technical term with a specific meaning. However, there are a few possible phrases that could be used instead of "trolling", depending on the context in which the word is being used.
For example, if you are referring to someone who is deliberately posting inflammatory or offensive content online in order to provoke a reaction, you could use the phrase "internet trolling".
If you are referring to someone who is trying to disrupt a conversation or make it difficult for others to communicate, you could use the phrase "trolling for attention".
Finally, if you are referring to someone who is fishing for personal information or sensitive data, you could use the phrase "data mining" or "information harvesting".