Some people on here are ridiculously gullible

I don’t think people post about everyday things though unless something particularly out of the ordinary happens and then they need to talk about or ask advice about something pretty much once in a lifetime, no one is going to head to mumsnet to create a post to say today this pretty average thing happened.
Not saying I am gullible or believe everything I read but I do understand people are usually going through something quite outside of their comfort to have created a post about and discuss it.

Exactly. The idea that you can tell whether some sequence of events has ever happened, with 100% accuracy, purely down to "what you reckon" is far more deluded than replying to a thread in case your reply is helpful to someone.

Clicks?

I'm so glad it's not just me who's noticing this more and more, and I find it helps to scan a thread before replying to see if the OP has returned. IME those on the more obvious ones rarely do, so it saves time

And if one vulnerable person is helped, does it matter how many troll posts there are?

Edited to add I agree with this too, @Vroomfondleswaistcoat, though it can be more a theory than a reality since the more sensible posters we see on here tend to avoid obviously made up threads

I take posts at face value, I assume they were written in good faith and reply accordingly if it's something I am interested in or know something about. I don't get invested at all, if it's fake I have lost nothing, just a few minutes of my time that I had spare anyway. As pp said, its a form of entertainment, I have seen some great advice given on here, and had laughs along the way.

I think there is a creative writing course with a prize to the person who can achieve the most replies on MN.

I've not read all the posts on the thread but I am surprised at the number who seem to treat MN so lightly given the fact that for many women who don't have family, friends and a support system irl the site is a life line.

You have no idea of whether the majority of pp on this thread are men or women. You are assuming they are women. The pp I quoted specifically wanted us to know that he was a man enjoying using the site for his amusement. That doesnt mean to say other pp who express similar views are necessarily women.

I think this thread is pretty depressing and unpleasant and yet another reason for people with genuine problems NOT to bother starting a thread .

To the contrary, some people have no concept of theory of mind and also no concept of the fact that not everyone's life is like theirs or that of their peers'.

I've had more than one thread where I've posted about a real situation and someone has told me I have made it up. It's quite disheartening to be honest. Sometimes those threads were quite lighthearted but other times they weren't and It's not nice being told you're lying when you are aware 100% that you're not.

On one such thread, I eventually posted (potentially quite outing!) photos to prove myself, I shouldn't feel that I have to do that.

Sure some threads are made up. But I suspect quite a lot of them that we might think are, are not.

My friend's birth mum was like that IRL. He's a triplet and she was so neglectful they were removed from her and put up for adoption.

I think this is why troll hunting or doubting the veracity of the thread can get you deleted. It would be upsetting to have a predicament so awful people couldn't think it was real, for instance.

But sometimes you do see posters leaning in and fuelling what is obviously a made up thread and wonder why they are giving it fuel - though just as often I think what does it matter: if someone is so desperate for attention that they make up a thread, perhaps they really do need the attention!

Yes, I've had a couple of threads where peolle have been all "gotcha" and believed they were fiction when they weren't. Of course people chnage a few details, but that doesn't mean it's not true.

Well yes I am reacting to your original comment. And from what you say here your comment was specifically made for that purpose.

If you had said that you do take some threads seriously and engage with them as such then of course my reaction to your post would have been different. But you chose to give the impression you thought the whole MN site was just entertainment. You were deliberately misleading just to try and score points off other pp and I don't think that is something to be proud of.

I posted about a personal issue recently under a different username and got reported for being fake. It was entirely true. We really should try to keep an open mind, and just because we can't imagine something happening doesn't mean it isn't.

Engagement. There are compulsive liars IRL. As they say on MN "you can be who you want on here".

This is true. So often people post “if this is all you have to worry about then your you’re lucky”.

Failing to realise that people can be desperately worried about a seriously ill family member and global warming at the same time as being annoyed that the same child gets star of the week every week in their child’s y1 class.

A large part of what is posted on this site is utter bovine but entertaining all the same. .

The begging thread posters NEVER have friends or family, why is that? I'm sure most people, even the most unlikable ones, have at least one person they vaguely know who could bung them a tenner until payday. I sometimes wonder how much they make and if it's worth me starting a thread claiming to be skint ready for Christmas shopping.

Someone who does have similar issues might be real and the advice still helps if they read it?

You're not allowed to troll hunt, it'll get you banned?

It's funny?

If you disbelieved one thing why engage with any of it. Why believe a word anyone online says ever? Isn't it better to assume things are genuine but with a big pinch of salt?

What examples do you have of fake posts?

I agree the begging threads are a scam, but having worked with homeless people, it is very true that they often find themselves in that situation because they have no one.

My DS got himself in a terrible mess when he was away at University. He came home. I honestly don't know what would have happened to him if he hadn't been able to do that. His story was very similar to the homeless men I met. The only difference was he had someone to catch him when he fell. He'd had some friends but none who were going to stick around and offer the kind of support he needed at that time.

I voted yabu because life can at time be stranger than fiction.

Agree. I nearly reported a thread I thought was nonsense. But I didn't bother.

MN doesn’t have to be just used for one thing though.

I can read a thread for entertainment and view it like a soap opera, But that doesn't mean that if I choose to post I don’t give sensible, considered advice.

I don’t get overly invested or emotional about threads but I have used advice I’ve read here, bought products recommended, read books or articles linked to and learned a great about a variety of political and social viewpoints.

My favourite thing about MN is that it gives me access to the views/experiences and lives of people I would never ever meet in my day to day life, helps me to avoid echo chamber politics and thinking.

It can be both entertaining and supportive at the same time.

Yes I see loads that I'm pretty sure are men using AI to make up stupid stories and they sit back and watch the women give advice. It definitely comes in waves.

I agree. Some posters have pointed out that there's fake threads on here and people respond asking why they care, that they're entertaining etc.

I find them frustrating, I don't want to give my thoughts, time, concern and attention to fiction.

I'm dubious about a more and more that I online in general now. Especially here and on Facebook.

Presume you're talking about that you scary story one. Don't care I loved it. It's not compulsory to post or read any of the threads on here in fact it's not compulsory to be on Mumsnet, if you don't like it go somewhere else. 🫠