Laura Fox reveals how she turns the tables on online trolls

Laura Fox says she has developed her own way of dealing with people who target her online: she checks what they share publicly and sometimes uses what she finds to answer their attacks. The RTÉ broadcaster described being criticised over the short dress and bow she wore for her civil wedding in Dublin, before a later celebration in Italy with her husband, Brian Moran. One message, she recalled, complained that the outfit had spoiled the sender’s day and questioned why Moran had married her in it. Fox said the negative reaction came from a small number of people and that she was not troubled by what others said in public comments. What upset her was receiving direct messages during the busy week of her wedding. After marrying on a Tuesday, she said, she had a day off before returning to work and preparing to finish her 2FM show for the summer. She recalled that one message complained that she was “ruining” the sender’s life. Fox said the criticism was out of proportion to what had prompted it, describing the dispute as being about a bow and a short dress. She added that people were free to dislike her choices, but she did not think they needed to send their opinions directly to her. Fox also said she removes insulting comments from her social media pages. She compared the process to keeping dirt out of her home, saying she does not have to accept mean remarks and can simply delete them. In some cases, Fox said, she visits a critic’s profile to see what they have posted publicly. If the account is not private, she may look through its content and use information she finds when responding. The article presents this as her way of turning the focus back on people who have criticised her. Her approach, Fox said, is not to take every hostile comment to heart. Instead, she chooses what remains on her pages and, at times, responds by checking the public material that the person attacking her has chosen to share.