Trolling Ourselves to Death: Democracy in the Age of Social Media

Trolling Ourselves to Death moves beyond the familiar picture of trolling by recasting it in a broader historical light. Contrary to the popular view of the troll as an exclusively anonymous online prankster who hides behind a clever avatar and screen name, Jason Hannan argues that the troll has emerged from the cave, so to speak, and now walks in the clear light of day. Synthesizing media ecology with historical materialism, Hannan explores the disturbing rise of political unreason in the form of mass trolling and sheds light on the proliferation of disinformation, conspiracy theory, "cancel culture," and digital violence.