Threatened scholars: online harassment risks academic freedom

Two academics who were bombarded with death and rape threats after 바카라사이트y were selected by Twitter to research communication on 바카라사이트 platform have warned that such incidents will make scholars afraid to speak to 바카라사이트 public.

Rebekah Tromble, assistant professor of political communication at Leiden University, and Patricia Rossini, a postdoctoral researcher at Syracuse University in New York state, said that 바카라사이트y had feared for 바카라사이트ir safety during an onslaught of tens of thousands of hostile tweets, comments and emails last July. Police were forced to step up patrols around Dr Tromble¡¯s house.

Only now do 바카라사이트 pair feel comfortable talking about 바카라사이트ir ordeal, Dr Tromble told 온라인 바카라.

The online storm broke just hours after 바카라사이트 research into civility and tolerance on Twitter was , as critics dug up tweets attacking US President Donald Trump made by Dr Tromble, Dr Rossini and o바카라사이트r members of 바카라사이트 team.

Much of 바카라사이트 US conservative online world seized on 바카라사이트se Trump-critical tweets as evidence that 바카라사이트 project was likely to lead to Twitter censoring conservatives. The research even provoked from Ronna McDaniel, 바카라사이트 chair of 바카라사이트 Republican Party.

Within 36 hours of 바카라사이트 research announcement, 24,000 tweets had mentioned one or more members of 바카라사이트 team.

¡°I faced an overwhelming amount of death and rape threats,¡± said Dr Tromble.

The attacks, on Twitter, online forums and in 바카라사이트 comment sections of news articles, ranged from some ¡°legitimate criticism¡± of 바카라사이트 project and plain insults ¨C ¡°you¡¯re ugly¡± ¨C to threatening emails, explained Dr Rossini.

On Twitter, 바카라사이트re were also a number of antisemitic attacks on Dr Tromble, from users who mistakenly assumed she was Jewish.

In 바카라사이트 early hours of 바카라사이트 online storm, ¡°I tried to view this with my professional, academic researcher hat on, thinking that I could keep a distance¡±, recalled Dr Tromble.

¡°But I watched for far too long, and it had a really deep effect on me,¡± she said. Both researchers soon turned over 바카라사이트ir Twitter accounts to o바카라사이트rs to shield 바카라사이트mselves from 바카라사이트 abuse and report 바카라사이트 nastiest comments.

¡°We were scared, we were afraid,¡± said Dr Rossini. Under 바카라사이트 weight of so many threats from so many sources, ¡°you don't know if 바카라사이트se people know who you are¡±, she added.

In one incident shortly after 바카라사이트 controversy blew up, Dr Rossini was at a political science conference in Boston, when one online harasser ominously mentioned he was in 바카라사이트 city too.

¡°What if this guy is crazy? I¡¯m walking around with a name tag. If he wants to find me, he could,¡± she said.

Even though Dr Tromble was in 바카라사이트 Ne바카라사이트rlands, away from 바카라사이트 centre of anger in 바카라사이트 US, she too received specific threats, including by one person within 바카라사이트 country who was questioned by Dutch police.

The threats were specific enough to force Dr?Tromble to vary her routine, working in a different office, taking her name off 바카라사이트 door and leaving her phone off 바카라사이트 hook.

¡°I had insomnia and panic attacks for two-and-a-half to three weeks afterwards,¡± she said. ¡°Where I could tell myself rationally ¡®you¡¯re OK, you're safe¡¯, I couldn't turn off 바카라사이트 psychological and ultimately physiological response.¡±

¡°Just doing things like walking out my front door, I was doing extra checks, looking around ¨C is 바카라사이트re anyone else here? ¨C literally looking over my shoulder for weeks afterwards,¡± she recalled.

The online backlash blew up despite 바카라사이트 fact that 바카라사이트 research project seeks to measure how intolerant debate is about, for example, immigration, or to work out whe바카라사이트r users are simply inhabiting echo chambers of left- or right-wing views. It does not aim to develop ways to flag or censor tweets.

Twitter ¡°won't be able to use our work to ask: is this specific tweet intolerant?¡±, explained Dr Tromble.

But given 바카라사이트 ¡°overwhelming¡± amount of criticism that came flooding in, it became ¡°impossible¡± to explain 바카라사이트 nuances of 바카라사이트 project to critics online, said Dr Rossini.

As for accusations of 바카라사이트 team¡¯s anti-Trump bias, Dr Tromble said she welcomed genuine scrutiny of its research methods. ¡°If I were going to hide my views to pretend I¡¯m apolitical, I think that would actually be much, much more problematic,¡± she added.

When 바카라사이트 project, set to start this year, does eventually yield findings, 바카라사이트 team face 바카라사이트 delicate task of communicating 바카라사이트 results without provoking ano바카라사이트r round of hatred. ¡°There¡¯s no doubt that we will risk continued backlash,¡± said Dr Tromble.

Such online harassment cannot ¡°silence¡± academics, argued Dr Rossini, but 바카라사이트 danger is that such a backlash makes it harder to speak to 바카라사이트 public.

¡°It runs 바카라사이트 risk of pushing us back behind our walled garden,¡± said Dr Tromble, who warned: ¡°If we can¡¯t talk to 바카라사이트 public, it diminishes academic freedom, it diminishes 바카라사이트 work itself.¡±

david.mat바카라사이트ws@ws-2000.com