When I read the article, it reinforced what I have seen over and over throughout my years in communications. There is no end to the levels to which people will stoop when they are anonymous. Mob mentality, urban apathy, hate mail/calls and violent words in social media circles all create a platform for some people that seem incomprehensible to the rest of us. And, yet does it? I have witnessed the most sane, rational people say the most outrageous things online when they don’t think anyone will find out. I am not going to try to analyze why this happens as there are better minds than mine to do that. I want to talk about how to communicate — or not communicate — when you are the object of this type of non-affection.

In all crisis communication training, the aim is to not fuel the fire; it is to calm the flames. Some people might think it is to put the fire out and most often that is unachievable. If someone is that angry, chances are you won’t get them onside with your way of thinking. That is evident in the end of the email exchange with the reporter where the agitator signs off with Good luck you bitter old sour tit.

The online world creates a forum for people to let off steam, whether you like the tone or not. Your reaction takes a level head and a thick skin. First, criticism, no matter what its cloak, can bring forward a viewpoint that we may not have considered. A majority of the time, it is best to let the criticism stand and let others respond rather than get into a personal battle.

A colleague and I experienced a “mob swarming” on a blog we had long ago. It was a tad alarming and our initial reaction was one of shock and defensiveness. Thank goodness we both had plenty of crisis communication experience and talked it through before we responded. We did reply in a firm, yet rational manner and they eventually went away. That is not always the case. If the group had us as a target they would have stayed around for the fireworks. No reaction is always an option. Each circumstance requires a calm, careful review before anyone hits a keyboard. In today’s world we all need a Mr. Spock, the unemotional half-Vulcan on the original Star Trek TV series. We humans have a great tendency to hit back when attacked.

These attacks can come in the form of email, commentary on a blog, Facebook slights, Twitter mobs, video and much more. I’ll help you prepare for these situations in my next post, Preparation Frees You to be Smarty Pants. In the meantime, here is my 10 minute drill for communicating in an online assault:

1. Yell, scream and swear at your computer. (Quietly if you are in the vicinity of others.)
2. Read it or watch again. You will probably reread or watch it many times.
3. Talk to the most rational person you know — not necessarily your best friend or your mom as they may react just as emotionally.
4. Imagine yourself in this person’s shoes. Is there anything in that message that has any validity? Think of this as a debate when you are forced to take an opposing view. This is classic crisis communications planning, which I will cover in my next posting; you always play out how your opposition will react.
5. Think about your response — don’t type it. Hand-write your thoughts or stick your points on a Post it note, then step back and take five deep breaths.
6. Get another opinion.
7. Make a list of pros and cons of responding.
8. Get one more opinion from someone you know who often has ideas contrary to yours.
9. Think about the worst-case scenario and look again online to see if anyone else is responding. Google the issue further to see what people are doing and saying. Ask yourself if you are doing the right thing — go deep on that one.
10. Take another 10 minutes and walk around the block or go up and down a flight of stairs. Then decide what to do.

I hear about new online communication disaster stories every day. While I am interested in more of those, I am really eager to know about the ones that turned out well. Let me know.