Trolls in the newsroom: coping strategies for online harassment

Readers and viewers can make their voices heard in comment sections and on social media platforms like never before. Online interaction holds out the promise of thought-provoking discussion and more engaged audiences, but journalists increasingly face the kind of abuse and harassment that poisons genuine debate and in some cases can lead to real psychological harm. This panel will offer a guide to trolls, their tactics, habitats and various subspecies, ones which range from those who are mostly thoughtless and inconsiderate to those who are systematically organised and more genuinely dangerous. Panelists will share experience, offer their personal strategies for pushing back against the toxic tide and discuss what it may take to create a free and civil online space for both journalists and their audiences.

Organised in association with the Dart Centre Europe.