For months, the Erica Marsh account had raised suspicions among online misinformation experts due to her lack of a real-world footprint and her devotion to attention-grabbing viewpoints one called “cartoonishly liberal.”
Sadly, that won’t matter to the account’s conservative “fans.”
Yes, if an online account is behaving that way, it’s almost certainly a fake intended to induce rage (and short-circuit critical thinking).
But let’s say the conservative behind the account is positively identified, or it’s clearly determined that the account is operated out of a Macedonian troll farm. Nothing anyone says to conservatives who believe it’s real will change their minds, because they actively want to believe in it.
Sadly, that won’t matter to the account’s conservative “fans.”
Yes, if an online account is behaving that way, it’s almost certainly a fake intended to induce rage (and short-circuit critical thinking).
But let’s say the conservative behind the account is positively identified, or it’s clearly determined that the account is operated out of a Macedonian troll farm. Nothing anyone says to conservatives who believe it’s real will change their minds, because they actively want to believe in it.
This could be said of just about anything that requires pausing critical thinking skills.