Independent Media Centre Ireland     http://www.indymedia.ie

Trolling on Indymedia Ireland

category national | indymedia ireland | news report author Tuesday June 08, 2010 22:43author by 1 of imc - Indymedia Ireland

False reports of the death of Brian Lenihan T.D., Minister of Finance

Two stories posted this evening on Indymedia Ireland reporting the death of Brian Lenihan have been hidden by site moderators.

Two stories were posted on the site this evening, the first at 19.11, the second at 19.39, falsely reporting the death of Brian Lenihan. The 'story' was posted by 'Bethanne Killfoil' and a false RTÉ email address given. Both stories were hidden promptly by Indymedia moderators.

The story was also posted on UK Indymedia at 18.10 and has now been hidden there too.

The 'story' was obviously not authored by RTÉ journalist Bethan Kilfoil and would appear to be the product of a sick imagination.

It is significant that the 'story' was initially posted on UK Indymedia an hour before it was posted here, sufficient time perhaps for the author to utilise Twitter and other new media to disseminate the falsehood.

Comments (15 of 15)

Jump To Comment: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
author by spartacuspublication date Tue Jun 08, 2010 23:23author address author phone

There was a separate report of someone's death a few weeks ago on both British and Irish Indymedia sites, as well a wikipedia.org- a prominent activist was supposed to have died that time.

Obviously some people have a lot of time on their hands.

author by Hmmmpublication date Wed Jun 09, 2010 00:27author address author phone

p.ie have used it to have a go at indymedia and open publishing.
http://www.politics.ie/media/131283-indymedia.html

Pot calling the kettle black? Surely p.ie of all sites are not in a position to be tut-tutting about the posting of false information.

author by Petrapublication date Wed Jun 09, 2010 02:50author address author phone

Scandelous behaviour , obviously the product of a sick mind

author by punterpublication date Wed Jun 09, 2010 11:10author address author phone

People who post on indymedia threads, myself included, are sometimes disappointed to have items hidden. At least the Hidden Articles List records such incidents and reasons are given by the monitors. Good work that they detected and quickly hid that recent poisonous 'news' item.

Self control and apt judgment by posters and continuing on-the-ball monitoring will ensure that indymedia can continue to serve many useful causes with credibility.

author by opus diablos - the regressive hypocrite partypublication date Wed Jun 09, 2010 15:29author address author phone

I believe he is alive and responding to treatment. I wish him a full a recovery. But I wouldn't go so far as to ever say he is OK.In fact his media-friendly manner and the sympathy vote probably mean he could deliver the hatchet to the weakest and sickest in our health service, while he,like his compadres, avails of the best private facilities his public-purse wages supply.They dont call us the sentimental Irish for nothing.

author by Mr Manpublication date Wed Jun 09, 2010 20:03author address author phone

Evening herald picked it up

http://www.herald.ie/national-news/cruel-net-hoax-as-le....html

author by Snouty Nosepublication date Wed Jun 09, 2010 20:52author address author phone

This rags statesthat the Gardai may now investigate. Loving their semantics.

author by non-voterpublication date Wed Jun 09, 2010 21:57author address author phone

This hoax against Lenihan should also be viewed as an attack on indymedia's credibilty as a news source, regardless of whether that was the intention of the person who posted it or not .

author by opus diablos - the regressive hypocrite partypublication date Thu Jun 10, 2010 10:21author address author phone

Have you met anti-semanticist and his personalised ploys?Then there is another one currently posting as emphatically NOT opus d. I suppose I should be flattered.Check it yourselves, seeing as that is the topic in question.The Lenihan trick? Any noise is good news to the troll. I can certainly understand how Indymedia would annoy the lobby lobby.

author by Hpublication date Thu Jun 10, 2010 10:58author address author phone

I'd say this was definitely an attempt to discredit Indymedia.

author by Joe Blogs (frequently)publication date Thu Jun 10, 2010 11:45author address author phone

during the events of the flotilla massacre and it's aftermath, Indymedia.ie was probably the most vital Non-Zionist-influenced information outlet available to Irish people. In this regard it surely must have been a thorn in the side of the Zionist-hasbara-machine's attempts to lie it's way through the outrage it so richly deserved.

An attack on Indymedia's credibility as a news source would certainly benefit such people, and would likely be seen as a form of 'pay-back' for having the temerity to highlight alternative narratives regarding events aboard the flotilla.

The fact that the Indo immediately jumped on the chance to attempt to discredit Indymedia is only to be expected from such a cheap & discredited peddler of establishment propaganda - and in some ways is actually a backhanded compliment to the Indymedia enterprise -

That they gave the non-story an article of it's own, complete with the nonsense phrase "Gardai may investigate" (or indeed MAY NOT 'investigate"), is testimony to their desperation.

author by horray Indymediapublication date Thu Jun 10, 2010 12:33author address author phone

it's pathetic the lengths some people will go to in order to discredit Indymedia

author by independent Mediapublication date Thu Jun 10, 2010 13:08author address author phone

Indymedia's very existence must by very annoying to the likes of the Irish Dependent Newspaper group

author by Bazooka Joepublication date Thu Jun 10, 2010 16:48author address author phone

Wouldn't be the first time some pup reported 'invented' a story so they could cover it. Then again there are more than enough mindless idiots to go around.

author by old codger - pensionerpublication date Fri Jun 11, 2010 12:25author address author phone

Indymedia is a prime target for the government and their special branch cronies. A site that offers freedom of speech and ideas that fight for truth and honesty does not fit in with their dictatorship schemes, so dont be surprised, they are well used to using dirty tricks they have been doing it for decades.
Keep up the good work folks and thank you for your labours.


http://www.indymedia.ie/article/96907

Indymedia Ireland is a media collective. We are independent volunteer citizen journalists producing and distributing the authentic voices of the people. Indymedia Ireland is an open news project where anyone can post their own news, comment, videos or photos about Ireland or related matters.