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> As a longtime user of the internet, from the 90s days of Usenet A big difference from those days is that most of the major troll communities actively shunned
by KirinDave 9y ago
> As a longtime user of the internet, from the 90s days of Usenet
A big difference from those days is that most of the major troll communities actively shunned people for what we'd call doxxing today.
It's quite striking how as folks became more and more interested in the outside world, it became more and more important to attack people.
- dragontamer 9y agoI think the turning point that "normalized Doxxing" was the anti-Scientology brigade a few years back. There are other bits and pieces here and there. "Forum Invasions" in the early 00s were frowned upon, but Stephen Colbert's call to edit the Wikipedia "Elephant" page basically normalized that practice somewhat. Furthermore, while Forum invasions were considered poor-taste, they are extremely effective in Reddit (at least a few years ago) to "Vote Brigade" certain topics to the top page. These actions are frowned upon, but the blood is in the water and people are now accustomed to their efficacy. Like sharks, the trolls smell the blood and enjoy their newfound powers. Furthermore, when these online attacks are looked upon with favor in the mainstream (see South Park, which glorified the anti-Scientology fervor, and of course Colbert), it only led to more widespread acceptance of these tactics.