Olympic Swimmer Rebecca Adlington To Quit Twitter Due To Trolls

June 3, 2012 2:00 pm     Posted in Buzz, Celebrity, Homepage Exclusive, Social Media  Caitlin Corsetti g+ page


By Caitlin Corsetti

Ah internet trolls. One of the best things to deal with as a blogger or person of fame. NOT. What is a troll you ask? Wikipedia defines a troll as “someone who posts inflammatory, extraneous, or off-topic messages in an online community, such as an online discussion forum, chat room, or blog, with the primary intent of provoking readers into an emotional response or of otherwise disrupting normal on-topic discussion.”

The number one rule when dealing with them is “Don’t feed the trolls” which can be difficult when you want to defend your internet honor. While it’s easy to write them off as people with no lives, trolling is a hurtful form of bullying. Olympic swimmer Rebecca Adlington decided to quit Twitter this year during the London games due to trolls.

Negative comments about her looks have proved to be hurtful, “Even if there are 10 nice comments, you get one idiot. I can’t help the way I look … but that has nothing to do with my swimming.”

While she’s only quitting Twitter temporarily, she says she has enough to stress over during the games. It makes me mad that trolls have such power with 140 characters or less.

What do you think about trolls? Should Rebecca Adlington quit because of them?

Caitlin is a graduate of the University of Alabama who has an obsession with cupcakes, coffee, and Harry Potter. She always has random fun facts on reserve and aspires to be a professional blogger, social media bug, and/or James Franco’s assistant. Follow her fabulous life @caitlincorsetti. You’re welcome!

[Lead image via Google]

7 Comments on "Olympic Swimmer Rebecca Adlington To Quit Twitter Due To Trolls"

  1. djnemec says:
    Mon, 4th Jun 20121:59 am 

    That's pretty crappy considering, you know, she looks perfectly normal. Trolls are unfortunately everywhere on the internet and it does get too much for some people. Quitting Twitter's probably not a bad idea for any of them. I know I'd spend more time surfing the net than training if I were her.

  2. Ariana Romero says:
    Mon, 4th Jun 201210:10 am 

    I seriously don't understand why people feel compelled to say mean things on the Internet! It's so true that one mean comment will stay with your far more than the nice ones. I wish I could bake a cake filled with rainbows and smiles and everyone would eat and be happy :)

  3. seja4639 says:
    Wed, 6th Jun 20129:57 am 

    I will never understand why people try to elevate themselves by putting others down. How insecure and cowardly. Can you imagine what the world would be like if we focused on the good in everyone – including ourselves?

  4. Melissa says:
    Mon, 25th Jun 20121:18 pm 

    People also need to toughen up get thicker skin. You're entire life you're going to come across assholes to put it bluntly. You have to have your own opinion of self and completely believe in yourself. F the haters!

  5. Caitlin-University of Alabama says:
    Sat, 30th Jun 201212:17 pm 

    I don’t know if it’s necessarily about having a thick skin or not. Regardless of how confident you are in yourself, if enough people are constantly berating you and putting you down, it’s going to take a toll on you at some point.

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