While this site isn't a trolling site, this site has had a history of trolling in the past with Chris Chan. Most of us probably have participated in trolling before joining the site.
Now that I have matured, and although I don't really troll anymore, as entertaining as trolling is, I find myself debating the ethics of some events of trolling.
For one, I stand by the principal of "do more harm", trolling has a line and it should not cause permanent harm or distress that carries onto real life. Most trolling doesn't cause that much harm, especially if it's online, but some cases such as Jesse Slaughter back in the days of 4chan have gone too far back in the days of 4chan and have caused permanent distress and have negatively affected their life. Stealing someone's credit card number as part of a trolling plan I would find wrong on an ethical and moral level.
The second principal I gold is that there needs to be a goal, most of the goals of trolling are done for entertainment or humor, and some of the past trolling plans of Chris cham were extremely clever and we'll thought out. Spamming someone's email or Facebook and calling them " fag" has no clear goal, isn't funny, and although it wouldn't meet the first principal of distress would not be ethical because there isn't any clear goal.
With the group mentality and the detachment that occurs online, do you have times where you see someone trolling and think "that has gone a bit too far." Or "that is wrong."? Where are your limits if you have any?
Now that I have matured, and although I don't really troll anymore, as entertaining as trolling is, I find myself debating the ethics of some events of trolling.
For one, I stand by the principal of "do more harm", trolling has a line and it should not cause permanent harm or distress that carries onto real life. Most trolling doesn't cause that much harm, especially if it's online, but some cases such as Jesse Slaughter back in the days of 4chan have gone too far back in the days of 4chan and have caused permanent distress and have negatively affected their life. Stealing someone's credit card number as part of a trolling plan I would find wrong on an ethical and moral level.
The second principal I gold is that there needs to be a goal, most of the goals of trolling are done for entertainment or humor, and some of the past trolling plans of Chris cham were extremely clever and we'll thought out. Spamming someone's email or Facebook and calling them " fag" has no clear goal, isn't funny, and although it wouldn't meet the first principal of distress would not be ethical because there isn't any clear goal.
With the group mentality and the detachment that occurs online, do you have times where you see someone trolling and think "that has gone a bit too far." Or "that is wrong."? Where are your limits if you have any?
