April 29, 2019
SILENCING YOUR TROLLS
To members and administrators of all Democratic groups: Russian and Republican trolls have been infiltrating your groups since 2015. After the success in interfering our election in 2016, they have kicked it up several notches. There are hundreds of new fake Facebook and Twitter accounts being generated daily, and it shows in your groups and personal pages. Most groups are a real mess.
What is it that makes them so successful?
The answer: "YOU DO".
At this point in the campaign season, all of your efforts should be geared toward promoting your candidate, and nothing more. Speeches, debates and town halls will highlight the differences between candidates. By reacting to the trolls divisive posts and replies, we share their hateful messages. Messages that are designed to divide the Democratic voters, and create a condition whereby "If my preferred Democratic candidate doesn't win the primaries, I'm not voting", or to cause voter apathy, so that voters aren't willing to stand in line on election day. The depressing nature of the arguments in most political groups can really cause reasonable voters to disengage from politics altogether. So, these trolls rely on you reacting to them, sharing their misinformation among your Democratic friends, and infighting within the electorate.
Facebook and Twitter WILL NOT solve this. It's up to group administrators and moderators to solve the problem as a community. They have you outnumbered by far, but that's only a problem because you allow them to remain and help them spread their seeds. As a community, it is up to us to clean up our social media feeds, and we had better all do it FAST. In the end, whoever wins the Democratic nomination will need ALL of us to come out and vote, place a non-Republican in the White House, and return the Senate to Democratic control. Remember that congressional lines will be re-drawn in 2021, and we MUST remove the gerrymandering that Republicans implemented back in 2011. This is a must-win situation.
1. Add moderators to identify trolls and negative people.
2. Don't allow bashing of other Democratic candidates.
3. DO NOT react or reply to their posts or replies.
4. Block the poster from commenting or viewing your group or wall.
5. Delete the poster as a member of your group.
What made them successful in 2016 and is making them successful as we move toward 2020 is Democratic individuals and groups that play into their hands. Sowing distrust and division, causing supporters of one Democratic candidate to hate the others, even though 90% of their policy positions are in unison is an amazing feat that some would call "Evil genius". Russia has perfected this infiltration with the support of our Republicans and current President. It's a really simple theory. If they can sow discord within the Democratic electorate, and if we add some really dirty voter suppression tactics, they will win.
Please contact the ADMINISTRATORS of your Democratic groups, especially groups that support specific candidates, and offer to help moderate these groups. Take the wind out of the sails of these trolls.
IGNORE, BLOCK, DELETE without comment. It's the sharing and commenting of these divisive posts and comments that makes them successful. They only have you outnumbered if you allow them to hang around causing trouble. Do some housekeeping and weed these trolls out. Stay vigilant and understand that your group is being attacked by a foreign adversary. These trolls, by in large, are NOT eligible American voters, but the ones who are eligible to vote are Republican operatives.
It's pretty bad, but it's early enough that we can fix it IF we work together.
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