If you scroll past the text of an online news article on CNN, IGN and Breitbart, you'll find that they all have one thing in common — trolls. Research from Stanford and Cornell has shown that we don't pnly need to rely on the internet age old methodology of "don't feed the trolls" to deal with the ever excitable internet trolls.
A new algorithm can predict which users might turn out to be trolls. The research looked at individuals (1.7 million users) who commented on special interest sites – news (CNN), gaming (IGN), and politics (Breitbart) – and compared the users that were inevitably banned (deemed antisocial) and those that never were banned.
It turns out, there's a lot more to trolls than meets the eye (in comparison to people who never get banned):
- Trolls get worse over time
- Write comments that make less sense (especially on gaming sites)
- Write more comments
- Write negative comments
- Write comments that are off-topic and are successful in "luring others into fruitless, time-consuming discussions."
The study proposes that their findings could make the internet a better place. Using the troll locating algorithm could clean up the community (you know, delete them before they're bad):
This can lead to new methods for identifying undesirable users and minimizing troll-like behavior, which can ultimately result in healthier online communities.
Unfortunately, the study didn't take sarcasm into account because apparently sarcasm is out-dated tool no longer employed by the masses. The study did confirm something we already knew, the age-old methodology "don't feed the trolls" works best.
Anti-social behavior is exacerbated when the community feedback is overly harsh.
Let's be honest though, what would the internet be without trolls? Sites would make less money because no one was coming back to argue with trolls and see advertisements. Discussions would actually lead to some kind of result, instead of ending in pointless banter.
You have to ask yourself, what do you need from the internet? At that point you will realize two things, the internet is actually the Loch Ness Monster and it wants about tree fiddy.
Check the study out here.
[TIME]
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