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New Campaign Features Internet Trolls On Roadside Billboards (bbc.com)

Posted by Soulskill on from the because-trolls-will-hate-all-that-attention dept.

An anonymous reader writes: A campaign taking shape in Brazil seeks to fight online harassment in an unusual way: by posting the abusive comments on real billboards. "The group collects comments from Facebook or Twitter and uses geolocation tools to find out where the people who have posted them live. They then buy billboard space nearby and post the comments in huge letters, although names and photos are pixelated." Brazil has laws prohibiting racial abuse, but this group doesn't think the government is doing enough to stop it. The campaign's founder said, "Those people [who post abuse online] think they can sit in the comfort of their homes and do whatever they want on the internet. We don't let that happen. They can't hide from us, we will find them."

4 of 197 comments (clear)

  1. What does this accomplish? by Keiran+Halcyon · · Score: 5, Insightful

    "Those people [who post abuse online] think they can sit in the comfort of their homes and do whatever they want on the internet. We don't let that happen. They can't hide from us, we will find them."

    So the idea is that you're going to find them, and then post their picture and their message near to them so that they and everyone else can see what a tool that person is. Except you're going to obscure the picture and hide the name so that nobody knows who did it except the original author. Basically, you're just publishing this person's hate mail on the wall like a poster, and letting them see their work writ large.

    1. Re:What does this accomplish? by dpidcoe · · Score: 4, Interesting

      The meaning of trolling has changed now from "pretending to take an inflammatory stance on a subject with the intent of pissing people off" to "offending people".

      But you're right in that whichever definition you use, this seems like a bad idea. If the "troll" fits in the traditional definition, they've basically won the game by getting someone so riled up that they took out an entire billboard about it and put their comment in a kind of hall of fame. If they fit the modernized definition and actually believe their own nonsense, they'll probably be happy to see their comments reaching a wider audience.

      Best case it might raise awareness in parents in the sense of them seeing it and thinking "that's terrible! I wonder what timmy posts online?" and maybe looking at their kids comment history for once.

  2. Road Signs by PPH · · Score: 4, Funny

    Post insulting tweets
    in attempt to inflame
    your message on signs
    will be your fame
    Burma Shave

    --
    Have gnu, will travel.
  3. Not the effect they intended by grimmjeeper · · Score: 5, Informative

    This kind of passive-aggressive whining will only encourage the trolls. Trolls thrive on the reaction they get. Giving them a billboard full of their trolling will stoke their ego more than anything else. This approach will only encourage them to troll harder so they get more billboards dedicated to their trolling.