When first introduced to this topic of trolling, I believed that all anonymity was bad due to it being closely associated with the idea of trolling. However, after reading the last four articles of the war against online trolls, I began to have a better understanding of both. Both anonymity and trolling are usually seen together.
However, in the room for debate articles there is a fine line drawn between the two. Anonymity is actually shown to have provided many benefits for those who are not trolling. Anonymity allows writers to get a message across without having to worry about a bias response. It can also protect people when speaking out an unpopular opinion.
Trolling can be done without being anonymous. If a user if on a forum without knowing anybody, allowing his name to be shown will be no different from having an anonymous username.
I found this interesting because at first we learned so much about anonymous trolls and different ways proposed to stop them. The idea of being anonymous is so closely related to being a troll, that I started to believe that anyone who is anonymous is a troll.
While reading the first room for debate articles, my idea of a troll was strengthened. I was focused more on how to get rid of trolls and contain their chaos. However, after the last four articles I began to focus less on a troll, but more of what a troll actually is. The last four articles created a line between anonymity and trolls and I found it interesting that the two are so close associated yet not always related. It also surprised me how many benefits anonymity can provide for someone who does not look to wreak havoc and avoid consequences.
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