Tattle Life Almost Destroyed Me

(And I almost let it)

This post contains quotes from threads on Tattle that are dedicated to discussing me. They’re not the only posts on there – some are complimentary! People post about how they like my writing, or our podcast; sometimes they berate meaner posters for what they’ve written about me. But, as tends to happen with these things, it’s not the nice posts that stick with me. It’s the rest of them.

She’s next level pathetic, adds no value to society, yet her entitlement knows no bounds.

Late last week, a Northern Irish court ordered the identity of a formerly anonymous website owner be made public, after the man in question lost a defamation case against a couple, Neil and Donna Sands, who were subject to defamation and harassment on his website, Tattle Life.

It’s a judgment that will mean absolutely nothing to the vast majority of people. For the influencers whose appearances, lives, relationships and businesses have been torn apart on the gossip website Tattle Life, however, knowing the identity of its founder, one Sebastian Bond, also known as Bastian Durward (and who posted on the site as Helen McDougal) marks one step towards unmasking the many anonymous users who spend a lot of their time posting criticism about influencers, business people and celebrities on the site.

The website, according to itself, has “a zero-tolerance policy to any content that is abusive, hateful or harmful”, while also hosting threads with titles such as “Katie Price #471 Leg's [sic] like sticks, prancing in her nicks, which went right up her crack, madam really is tack”; “Vicky Pattison #22 Vicky can’t stop posting, always boasting, crap at hosting!”; and “Charlotte Taylor #45 Monjaro speculation, child neglect, oh how I love myself, check”.

Posters will defend their “right” to post on Tattle by citing free speech laws; bringing up the fact that influencers can’t take criticism, and frequently respond by blocking their critics; and the old adage, “if you put yourself out there…” while using the site and their anonymity on it to post diatribes about people’s weight, looks, parenting, work ethic and the cleanliness of their homes, as if they’re somehow the internet’s crabby old auntie, just out here telling the truth, for each influencer’s “own good”.

The court case has seen a wide range of influencers and social media users commenting on the judgment, and the site more generally, detailing their own experiences of being posted about on Tattle, from mild criticism to threats of calling child services on mothers for the crime of, er, giving their children an “objectionable” nickname.

It has – but of course – made me start thinking about (surprise!) myself, my experience being the subject of bitchy online posters, and what this experience has done to my confidence, my work and, ultimately, my life.