BBC outs a troll on television

Where was this, Wales?

Nice.

I wonder if that guy had to sign a release to allow his face to be used on that TV program.

Oh yeah. Didn't think of that. Good point.

I hate internet trolls. Freakin' keyboard cowards are so pathetic that I get nauseated thinking about it.

I odn't like them either and this guy is scum. Not sure what can be done about it though. I was a little suprised to hear he could be jailed for racist remarks like he made. That's why I asked where he was from.

For a news show interviewing him in a public place, I would guess not (I only skimmed the clip ... I think I will watch the complete episode of Panorama at a later date).

Yeah probably not. It was basically one of those ambush interviews. Whether or not that should be allowed would probably make for an interesting discussion itself. But it is pretty commonplace.

I was also wondering how they got he info to track him down, but it looked like the comments they were talking about were made on facebook. Which is far from anonymous.

The "troll" himself tried to argue that facebook was a public place. Since he decided to post his racist "free speech" in a public place, he would not, I would argue, be entitled to a reasonable expectation of privacy as far as the news interview went.

The host mentioned Cardiff, so I assume so.

Yes, a public page on FB is, in essence, a public place. Even though I'm sure whoever runs that page has the ability to delete any comment and probably block the person from commenting any further.

I'm sure they did.

I don't care how offensive anyone is online, and you shouldn't either.

The internet is "The Oracle" of our age, and in the market of free ideas the best ideas tend to prevail (unless stifled). Trolls do not go away through expose or argument, they fade away by ignoring them."Don't Feed the Trolls"

On the other hand, physically tracking someone down because of their opinions or statements online is far more offensive to me than any commentary, and should be handled by actual authorities if the situation demands it. Otherwise, anti-troll cyberstalking becomes actual stalking and is a crime, & potentially hazardous.

I wouldn't think simply finding the location of someone for an interview would be considered stalking. If it is, then investigative reporters are stalking/breaking the law all the time.

In this case, the interviewer simply approached the man for an interview. Yes, with the intent of 'outing' the troll, but again, this happens all the time in investigative reporting.

I would imagine that the show checked the laws before locating and approaching the numbskull.

I shouldn't care when someone posts racial slurs on a memorial page dedicated to somebody's loved one?

I do care.

Evil triumphs when good men do nothing.

Hear hear!

Kam

I read all the comments first before I watched the vid, and I'm 100% in agreement with Masterminder and Kambiz.

This guy is just an ignoramus spouting off in what he figured was an anonymous manner. The real trolls are the ones that get paid to troll the interwebs and plant lies and false stories. It's an actual profession. These are the ones that create the most havoc online, imho.