New Study: At Least 15% of All Reddit Content is Corporate Trolls Trying to Manipulate Public Opinion

[anonpuffs]

 

[anonpuffs]

The Impact of Corporate Trolls on Reddit: A Growing Problem​

The rise of social media has brought about a new battleground for the spread of misinformation, manipulation of public opinion, and promotion of products and services. Reddit, one of the most popular social media platforms, has not been immune to this phenomenon.

Two significant studies, the Pew Research Center study conducted in 2018 and the Computers in Human Behavior study published in 2020, have shed light on the prevalence and impact of corporate trolls on Reddit.

Pew Research Center Study: Unveiling the Reach of Corporate Trolls​

The Pew Research Center study, conducted in 2018, delved into the experiences of 2,505 adult Americans who use Reddit.

The findings were alarming, revealing that a considerable portion of Reddit users had directly encountered the influence of corporate trolls.

The study found that 11% of the respondents had been contacted by a bot or troll attempting to promote a product or service. Even more concerning was the discovery that 13% of the respondents had witnessed a company manipulate public opinion on the platform.

The study’s demographic analysis further highlighted the targeted nature of corporate trolling. Younger users, particularly those aged 18–29, were significantly more likely to be contacted by corporate trolls, with 17% of them reporting such experiences, compared to only 7% of users aged 65 and over. This age-based discrepancy underscores the strategic approach of corporate trolls in engaging with a demographic that is often more susceptible to their influence.

Computers in Human Behavior Study: Uncovering Strategic Manipulation​

In 2020, the Computers in Human Behavior study provided additional insights into the tactics employed by corporate trolls on Reddit. The study focused on the top 100 subreddits, analyzing the content posted within these influential communities.

The results were alarming, with 15% of the top 100 subreddits found to have content that was likely posted by bots or corporate trolls, specifically aimed at promoting certain companies or organizations.​

One of the most concerning findings of the study was that corporate trolls were not only promoting products and services, but they were also strategically leveraging positive news articles to influence public opinion.

By posting links to favorable news coverage about the companies they represented, these trolls sought to create an illusion of widespread popularity and positive reception.

This insidious tactic aimed to sway the perceptions of Reddit users and potentially lead to the organic spread of the manipulated narrative.

The Real Problem: Spreading Misinformation and Manipulating Opinion​

Both the Pew Research Center and Computers in Human Behavior studies provide compelling evidence that corporate trolls pose a significant threat to the integrity of discussions and the dissemination of information on Reddit.

The implications of these findings are far-reaching, as corporate trolls are not merely seeking to promote products and services.

Their activities extend to spreading misinformation, sowing discord, and manipulating public opinion, all of which can have profound consequences for individuals and society at large…

The prevalence of corporate trolls on Reddit, as evidenced by these studies, underscores the urgent need for heightened awareness and proactive measures to identify and mitigate their influence. The insidious nature of their tactics, from direct contact with users to strategic content manipulation, demands a concerted effort to safeguard the platform’s integrity and protect its users from falling victim to corporate propaganda.

Corporate trolls and their manipulation of public opinion have been found on a variety of websites and social media platforms:​

Facebook​

Facebook has been a major battleground for corporate trolls. In 2016, it was revealed that Russian trolls had used the platform to spread misinformation and sow discord during the US presidential election. Since then, Facebook has taken steps to combat the use of its platform by trolls, but the problem persists.

Twitter​

Twitter has also been used by corporate trolls to manipulate public opinion. In 2018, it was revealed that Twitter accounts affiliated with the Saudi Arabian government had been used to spread propaganda and attack critics of the Saudi regime. Twitter has since taken steps to remove bots and fake accounts from its platform, but the problem continues.

YouTube​

YouTube has been used by corporate trolls to promote their products and services. In 2017, it was revealed that YouTube had been demonetizing videos from independent creators while allowing videos from large corporations to remain monetized. This led to accusations that YouTube was favoring large corporations over independent creators.

Google Search​

Google Search has been used by corporate trolls to manipulate search results. In 2019, it was revealed that Google had been manipulating search results to favor websites from large corporations. This led to accusations that Google was censoring independent voices and promoting corporate propaganda.

LinkedIn​

LinkedIn has been used by corporate trolls to build relationships with potential customers and partners. In 2019, it was revealed that LinkedIn had been used by former employees of the Russian troll farm the Internet Research Agency to connect with potential targets. This led to accusations that LinkedIn was facilitating the spread of Russian propaganda.

We cannot tell ourselves we live in a democracy when these entities can manipulate and obfuscate reality in attempt to extract wealth, time, labor and dignity from us.

 

[ToTTenTranz]

15% may not sound like much, but on reddit if you get just 100 accounts to upvote your corporate-shilling post or comment, then it will automatically trend and get sent to the top of that sub's daily list, which then gets sent to r/all or the home page of many people interested in that topic.

In that way, 15% is brutal and it will very clearly dominate all the content that actually appears in there.


Same thing for posts that are critical of a company for some reason. Get 100 "users" to downvote a comment you don't want to be seen within the first 2 hours and the thing will never be seen by anyone.


I have zero doubts that subs like r/StarWars are completely dominated by bots/shills, for example. It's nearly impossible that so many people there are enjoying the massive turd that is The Acolyte.

 

[anonpuffs]

15% may not sound like much, but on reddit if you get just 100 accounts to upvote your corporate-shilling post or comment, then it will automatically trend and get sent to the top of that sub's daily list, which then gets sent to r/all or the home page of many people interested in that topic.

In that way, 15% is brutal and it will very clearly dominate all the content that actually appears in there.


Same thing for posts that are critical of a company for some reason. Get 100 "users" to downvote a comment you don't want to be seen within the first 2 hours and the thing will never be seen by anyone.


I have zero doubts that subs like r/StarWars are completely dominated by bots/shills, for example. It's nearly impossible that so many people there are enjoying the massive turd that is The Acolyte.

It's very evident in subs that revolve around a specific product like the gaming subreddits

 

[2spooky5me]

I could easily have told everyone that for free/less research needed.
Look up a guy named “FireDrakeZ”. He spends his whole days defending Xbox on OTHER platforms, and everything he writes sounds like PR.

And so many folks who don’t even game, but shill for xyz platform, exist on Reddit, Twitter, etc.
The Xbox marketing team might as well admit they own the entire gaming industry, on the journalistic side + social media.

 

[voke]

and those 15% are the loudest as well.

 

[Gods&Monsters]

Just reading the headline and I think about Game Pass evangelists and Phil Spencer right away. It's obvious the whole thing was orchestrated by bots. The whole Xbox fanbase is extremely loud online when the numbers are so small.

 

[Johnic]

100% in the case of xbox subs.

 

[anonpuffs]

100% in the case of xbox subs.

the xbox reddits are run by microsoft directly, they recently closed down the xboxone and xboxseriesx subs and redirected everything to the xbox subreddit at the behest of microsoft