Trolling through the comments on the New York Times
When clicking thru the New York Times, I came across the Opinion page that a person can comment their thoughts on the post that is published. Whitney Phillips, the author of “This is Why We Can’t Have Nice Things”, stated “As is common within the endlessly twisty world of trolling, however, even this contextualized framing of trolling subculture requires additional context. The problem is the word” subculture” itself, which posits a singular, monolithic culture under whose umbrella smaller subsidiary cultures are said to emerge.” (pg.20 , Phillips) Trolling has become a new trend in social media. People say stuff online that will make someone mad. Phillips creates a word called lulz, “ so beings the Encyclopedia Dramatica (ED) entry on “Lulz,” a cornerstone of trolling humor and culture.”( pg.27, Phillips)
Phillips stated, “In this way, lulz are a fetish. Not in the sexual sense (in which specific objects-for example, shoes- become the point of acute sexual desire…)” (pg. 29, Phillips) In the New York times blog post today there was a To the Editor response on an article that they did titled “You Don’t Need a Meal in a Box” this article brings up the concept of Blue Apron and how everything that you need to make a meal is easy to use and everything is included. People can learn new techniques and try new things they would have never picked up at the store beforehand. It’s this fetish of trying something new without having to run to fifty-million stores to find it.
Phillips stated, “the link between community and humor, even ostensibly antisocial trolling humor, is well established. As literary scholar James English explains, humor is always a cultural event, never a discrete statement.” (pg.31, Phillips) Another comment section that I found had to with trolling and should Newspaper companies stop allowing people to comment on people’s post. People have been able to comment on newspaper for many years, why change this now.
Phillips stated, “The issue, then, isn’t where the trolling behavior occurs, but what the behaviors signify. And what the behaviors signify is that an individual has switched into trolling mode. He has, in other words, put on his mask.” (pg.34, Phillips) Back to the article of trolling and should Newspapers should stop allowing people to comment. People put on a mask when they are responding and arguing with others who and something more negative to say.
