Why is it called a "reverse"?

[samarrange]

Just that really... when people start to doubt that a post is real someone will write "Is this a reverse?", and I was wondering what the derivation of that phrase was. I suppose it's easy enough to work out the meaning from context, but I've not seen it anywhere else online— I would expect something more along the lines of "Are you trolling us, OP?" or "Is this a windup?". I was wondering if there is maybe some bit of Mumsnet folklore that I'm missing. 🙏

Trolling / wind up is different.

Reverse is writing it in what you perceive to be the other person's point of view.

It is when you post about a conflict from the opposite person's perspective, e.g. you are annoyed that your neighbour is parking in your driveway and you post 'AIBU to think it's okay to park there if my neighbour doesn't have a car?'

Sometimes people will post from the other person’s perspective (e.g the DIL will write as though they are the MIL), so reversing the positions.

While people feel that they are doing so fairly, it’s often quite obvious and makes it harder to reply because the writer clearly doesn’t know the motivations of the person they’re writing as.

You can usually spot them because they can't help sounding as if the other person is the reasonable one, however hard they try.

What they said.

"AIBU to think reverse posts are absolutely fine? Surely it's completely reasonable to write as if I am the other person in the story, completely making up whatever I think that person is thinking and whatever their motivation is, and thereby completely misrepresenting whatever the story is to make me (the purported villain) look great?!"

My alter ego disagrees with you. Or not, as the case may be. Is it me, or them? Who am I anyway?

<goes for a lie down in a darkened room>

Thanks everyone! I had no idea that someone would do something like this. #ShelteredUpbringing