Contrary to popular definitions of 'troll
bait,' one who is troll bait is not a victim or bullied. Those who are troll bait know exactly what they are doing and are in fact trolls themselves.
The term 'troll bait' describes a type of
trolling commonly found on the internet. 'Troll bait' is used to describe an internet user who knowingly invites the hatred of a highly reactionary group of trolls. A common characteristic of all troll bait is that they do things that are known to invite swarms of trolls (e.g. Creating pointless and incendiary videos, calling out entire troll communities). They do this because they find the constant anger and hate from trolls amusing, especially since this form of
trolling is a form of troll hunting (or counter-
trolling). Any type of troll bait usually causes trolls to fall into their own trap (getting annoyed and becoming upset).
Another characteristic of troll bait is that they are widely
popular, mostly due to the hate they receive. This is explained by the Streisand effect, where attempting to censor a form of media only draws more attention to it, making it even more
popular. In some YouTube communities, troll bait videos, while rated poorly (as most troll bait videos are),
may receive hundreds of thousands of views. As a result, the instant popularity that is possible from being troll bait makes this form of
trolling even more attractive.
YouTube video: "I'm calling out (insert
reactionary troll community here) for saying
mean things about me. Stop it! I'm going to take you all down!"
The above, while appearing to admit defeat to trolls, actually causes more trolls to swarm, thus fulfilling the troll
bait's purpose.
