Trolls, lulz, and Web 2.0

"Technology, apparently, does more than harness the wisdom of the crowd. It can intensify its hatred as well." Mattathias Schwartz, The Trolls Among Us, NYT Magazine, Aug 3, 2008.

Watch for this Sunday's New York Times Magazine for an article on the anarchic downside of Web 2.0.  It is unfortunate that, for some people,  open access encourages anonymous cruelty and destruction, made all the more fun when those in on the joke can gang up on the rest of us. 

Surely this kind of behavior makes it all the more necessary that those of us who are responsible adults (of whatever age) keep up to date.  Online "cool" must not be the privilege of only the irresponsible.  Maybe if teacher/librarians are always able to know at least a little something that our kids do not, they will be better able to accept our guidance about online safety and civility. In becoming part of the interactive web, we lead by example.  We may not be the bleeding edge in tech savvy, but we can set a standard for civil discourse, common sense and decency.  Don't let the Trolls win.