Cloutmys, Toxmys, & Fakemys: Avoiding Harmful "Fan" Accounts!

[THREAD BY POLL RESULT]

INTRODUCTION

I've always said that not everyone is in or around the ARMY fandom for the right reason. For better or worse our visibility, resources, etc. make us prime targets for people who are at best a nuisance and a drain on your mental health at worst.

If you're new to "Stan Twitter" or just never took the time to sit back and account watch, you might have ended up following a slew of whoever ended up in your timeline without much long-term consideration for what kind of person you're *really* dealing with.

As time passes, they reveal themselves to be blatantly unhelpful to your experience on this website for one reason or another. Often, they're not really helpful to the fandom at all.

Eventually, the layers are shed & your left with someone who just has no business on your feed.

For the purpose of this thread, I'm going to focus on a few main archetypes (how they behave, why they're harmful, and what you should do about them).

I. THE "CLOUTMY"

The clout-chaser or "Cloutmy" is an account that pretends to be ARMY but really, their entire purpose on this website is to crawl their way to influencer status. They can be a very small account or a large one, but their primary focus is always on themselves.

CLOUTMY TRAITS:

- Steals tweets, especially ones that perform well.
- Steals art & passes it off as their own.
- Pretends to be a translation account, doesn't speak the language.
- Lies about knowing members, fan experiences, etc.

- Will generally pursue "friendships" with larger accounts
- Once they reach a certain follower amount, will NEVER talk to smaller accounts (feel they're not "good enough.")
- Will cause drama for attention and constantly play the victim.

WHY CLOUTMYS ARE HARMFUL

Because clout-chasers are only after attention and influence, they'll do and say anything to get what they want. It doesn't matter who they hurt or deceive. All that matters is being popular and feeling they're better than others.

These people can generate all sorts of confusion by spreading fake translations or cause emotional harm by getting their followers to harass and bully their "enemies," which could literally only be someone who disagreed with them one time.

Clout-seekers use and abuse to the top.

HOW TO DEAL WITH A CLOUTMY

Muting and blocking the Cloutmy is the first step. The second is to avoid giving them the attention they desperately crave. Don't like their tweets or spread them by retweets.

Yes, quoting their comments counts as a retweet, as do screencaps.

II. THE TOXMY

The toxic fan account or "Toxmy" is the sort of account that claims to be on the team...but all they ever do is use their account to insult, demean, attack, and manipulate. They're pretty much always a bad time waiting to happen.

How do you know if you're dealing with a toxic fan account? When it comes to that person or those persons, ask yourself how you feel after reading their tweets. Do you feel happier and more motivated or do you feel angry, fearful, and troubled? Perhaps you even feel drained.

Many Toxmys also tend to use manipulative language, a lot of gaslighting, and constant guilt-tripping as well. You're often put in a position to feel bad or wrong or not good enough. To put this in context, your time as an ARMY, however busy, is largely meant to be a fun one.

WHY THEY'RE HARMFUL

Your mutuals and the people you follow should add to your online experience. Not fill you with anger, anxiety, and constant dread. If these people aren't adding to your experience in a positive way, you don't need them in your space!

Rejecting connections to people who cause you anxiety or emotional harm isn't something you should ever feel guilty about. It's *your* Twitter account; you should never feel forced to make way for troublesome people who only ever make you feel bad.

HOW TO DEAL WITH A TOXMY
Ridding yourself of a Toxmy can be harder than a Cloutmy because there's a chance you interact with such people directly. They may be someone you mooted before realizing what a drain they are on your wellbeing. Now you're afraid to unfollow.

If you're not afraid to rock the apple cart go ahead and unfollow/soft-block. If you're worried about confrontations, you can choose to stay moots but mute them, or soft-block them and also mute them.

Also, mute words associated with their account to keep them off of your feed.

III. THE FAKEMY

The fake ARMY or "Fakemy" accounts are also the most straightforward of the bunch. That is, they're just not ARMY.

These are your stalkers, scammers, solo antis, manager antis, shills (can't believe this a thing, but here we are), bored trolls, and hateful multis.

Some go through the trouble of performing "ARMY cosplay." They upload a BTS profile image, add a tiny little 7, and the constantly spew trollish nonsense. If you're a newer ARMY, this can be a bit off-putting and confusing (which is usually the goal).

WHY FAKEMYS ARE HARMFUL

A Fakemy will generally behave in ways that are counter to how ARMY operates. They'll embarrass, harass or threaten the members. They'll engage in rumor spreading, rule-breaking, and almost always behave like a hindrance rather than a help.

HOW TO DEAL WITH A FAKEMY

Block, mute, and when necessary, report them. Don't interact with or argue with them. You're wasting your time. Avoid them if at all possible. DO NOT GIVE THEM MONEY OR ANY PERSONAL INFORMATION!!!

Also recognize by their very nature, they do not speak for the fandom. These people are exploiters much of the time, or just terribly bored individuals with nothing better to do than cause trouble. Don't feel remotely guilty for swerving on their existence.

CONCLUSION: USE YOUR BEST JUDGEMENT WHEN CHOOSING WHO TO FOLLOW!

If you're not confident in your ability to create a Twitter experience that's enjoyable, feel free to check out my free ebook, "9 Tips For Surviving Stan Twitter!" https://drive.google.com/file/d/19ZLeaMNm1hFLTKk00mpl_60o5ZRWM0Cd/view?usp=sharing

THANKS FOR READING MY THREAD!