The BBC broadcaster boldly confronts purveyors of online misinformation but fails to find out what really motivates them
Halfway down the rabbit hole: What about those people who seem politically informed, but just don’t get them started on the moon landing? Photo: Nasa
“Some of my trolls say they want to kill me,” Marianna Spring tells us on back of her book jacket. It’s a morbid boast, but one that is merited. The journalist and broadcaster has been the target of tens of thousands of complaints sent by BBC listeners and viewers.
Spring was hired as the broadcaster’s first disinformation and social media correspondent in 2020, a time when bot farms, vaccine panic, disinformation and distrust of media all peaked in the online imagination. She has been stalked, harassed and intimidated, both online and in-person. She has also confronted her opponents face-to-face.
