Kenneth McCarthy (born c. 1980),[1] popularly known as Ken M, is an Internet troll known for his comments on news websites such as Yahoo! and The Huffington Post. Unlike the more common associations for the term troll on the internet, Ken's comments are usually benign, with his comments displaying a complete lack of understanding of the featured topic, while other commenters take him seriously.[2]
Background
Ken M worked as a copywriter for Comedy Central and a columnist for CollegeHumor,[1] and started posting to comments sections as Ken M in 2011 on various websites, mostly Yahoo! and The Huffington Post.[3] He has said that his aim was to "turn a toxic space into a source of belly laughter."[1] His absurd comments over the years made him widely considered one of the most prolific Internet trolls ever,[1][4] gaining thousands of fans on Facebook, Twitter, his subreddit, and Tumblr where he posts screenshots of all his comments as HorseySurprise.[4][5] Ken M was named one of the most influential people on the Internet by Time in 2016[4] and 'The Rembrandt of Yahoo Comment Trolling' by Uproxx.[5]
Internet character
The character McCarthy created (Ken M) has been described as "just an ill-informed old dude".[6] McCarthy is an advocate of "do no harm" trolling.[6] He has expressed his dislike for the term "troll" due to the negative connotations it carries.[6][7]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d Natasha Umer (October 3, 2015). "Tracking Down Ken M, One of the Internet's Most Accidentally Prolific Trolls". Upvoted. Archived from the original on May 8, 2021.
- ^ Edwards, Phil (May 6, 2016). "The world's greatest internet troll explains his craft". Vox. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
- ^ Kaila Hale-Stern (October 28, 2015). "Ken M Is The Most Epic Troll on the Internet". Gizmodo.
- ^ a b c Samantha Grossman (March 16, 2016). "The 30 Most Influential People on the Internet". Time.
- ^ a b Caleb Reading (February 10, 2012). "Meet Ken M, The Rembrandt of Yahoo Comment Trolling". Uproxx.
- ^ a b c Chloe Bryan (October 22, 2018). "Ken M and the lost art of 'do no harm' trolling". Mashables.
- ^ Kari Paul (April 1, 2016). "Legendary Internet Troll Ken M on What Comment Sections Tell Us About Ourselves". Motherboard.
 | This United States biographical article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
 | This biographical article about someone involved with the Internet is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
This page was last edited on 5 November 2023, at 13:20