Real Facebook page: Chris

Unlike Harmony in the previous profile, Chris posts about real life. He shares pictures of his family and places to eat in his hometown. Professional trolls are speaking to a wide audience, not just their neighbors in Columbia City. They aren’t very likely to put research into where to find good brisket.

Chris also has complex views. Examining his posts, you can see that Chris clearly has opinions that lean conservative, but he still pokes fun at President Trump. He was worried the media may have been sensationalizing the dangers of COVID-19 but is also clearly concerned about the impact of the virus on his community and on the globe. Professional trolls, on the other hand, tend to be more one dimensional.

You may have seen Chris had a typo in the first post, “such” instead of “suck.” It’s common to see discussion of foreign trolls’ poor English. While it’s true that many professional trolls are not native English speakers, and they do make errors, real people make mistakes as well. Don’t assume someone is fake just because you catch a typo.