Are there any genuine threads left?

[likelysuspect]

I mean I started one about my cat but she's been fed now so the crisis is more or less over. So despite the genuine high drama of that one, I dont see many threads which seem genuine and fulfilling?

There's not many really.

It does appear to be troll central around here.

Nope. I think 90% are made up crap

What annoys me is that you cant say that on the thread. You get cancelled and deleted

I've been on MN since 2011 and whilst there's always been trolls and fake threads, the last few months have probably been worse than ever.

What with that and all the AI crap, it's going downhill fast.

I think some threads are still real. I start one from time to time and get some good responses.
My cat got stuck in the kitchen when she wanted to lie in the sun on the front room window sill, if you want real drama.

I have started one today, its real, I am not a troll.

I enjoyed your cat one anyway 🤷‍♀️

I mean I would have been right in there

On the thread I mean, not your window.

I'll seek it out. And make a contribution, even if I know nothing of the subject

Thats my general MO anyway.

Can I just ask, genuine question, but how do you spot made up threads and as per a pp know that 90% are not real? I must be gullible but apart from the obviously odd ones I have assumed these are real posters. What are the signs. Perhaps I have not been on here long enough (2013)!

Completely outlandish

You read it and say 'thats unbelieveable'

And then realise, its not believable because its not true.

I think I'm missing something because I genuinely don't understand what the point of a fake or AI thread would be. Just for attention? People who are really bored?

Turns out I do know a lot about the subject and have already contributed, so thats that.

>Can I just ask, genuine question, but how do you spot made up threads and as per a pp know that 90% are not real?

Overlong. Just looks like it is extruded.

Withheld key information that might be dropped like a bomb after all the responders have followed the trail of bait. Of course you can't be sure of this until the ambush occurs.

'So'. If a thread starts with 'So', Just skip it. It may or may not be made up, but so help me you'll thank me for what I have saved you from.

Well I did start my cat thread because I was a bit bored but it was true

I dont have the imagination to make things up unfortunately!

Bear in mind a lot of MNers seem to think that something cannot be true if they personally haven't experienced it!

The number of threads I see with people explaining they live rurally with no shops or taxis and you see "just order Deliveroo/nip up the shops/ get the bus"!

The clearly made-up threads have a certain level of information and pace that's hard to explain but would sustain a lot of frothing and/or concern.

Personally I think a lot of potentially fake threads are when someone's experienced the start of a situation, it went smoothly without any drama, but they think "I wonder what wouldve happened if XYZ". So they are partially believable situations but with one stubborn character or run of bad luck or coincidence.

Yep, I agree. In addition to the trolls you have to consider, chat bot political manipulation and sedition, which is dominant in the Middle east conflict and other current affairs topics.
You see people arguing with a bot farm, this is insane.

Yes, you get a feeling that something is being set up for a multi thread saga. Once you've seen a couple, you find them easy to spot.

I’ve often wondered whether there are threads started for commercial purposes… and then a few people will chime in with recommendations for the same thing, and I always think they might be fake, and just set up as a form of advertising, by a marketing dept somewhere. And I also wonder whether the threads that ask a question that means you will post on there if you meet the criteria, are also set up for some sort of advertising / data-scraping exercise.. eg the sort of thread that asks ‘if you have a salary over £100k do you do x, y or Z?’…

There's always the option of reporting threads you don't think are genuine.

I'm suspect of the threads stating the worst thing a person has done, how they regret it to this day and then ask, What's the worst thing you've done? There seems to be a lot of threads following this format now. 🤔

That isn't always successful. I honestly think at this point MN HQ don't care as long as it drives traffic.

Its the one liners for me that give it away.