Snark, Defamation, and Tortious Interference—What’s Legal for Reddit Trolls?
As an entertainment law firm for influencers and content creators, we see the good, bad, and the ugly when it comes to social media. Platforms like Instagram and YouTube offer opportunities to create and build a brand for yourself, but they also open the door to negativity—especially on Reddit.
For a growing number of creators, they’re not just the main character on their own accounts—they’re the topic of “snark” subreddit communities. A barrage of social media lurkers sharing their unfiltered feelings and perceptions of influencers, these pages are a relentless stream of criticism and unsolicited opinions.
Redditors take to influencer-focused subreddits to dissect every detail of an influencer’s life, choices, and even launches and brand partnerships. While some snark might just be playful banter, it can quickly turn toxic and cross the line into defamation and tortious interference, threatening reputation and livelihood.
If you’ve been the topic of a snark thread on Reddit, this is what you need to know.
George Milton via Pexels
What’s Legal and What’s Illegal?
It’s important to have a thick skin as an influencer and this is why. Differentiating what’s legal and what’s not means that you’ll be reading the worst things about you online, or having a team who keeps tabs on Reddit for you. Not all snark is illegal. Understanding the difference between typical internet criticism (snark), defamation, and tortious interference is crucial.
What is Snark?
Snark is rude criticism and it lives on places like Reddit and in the comments section on social media.
Is Snark Against Influencers Illegal?
It’s not illegal to be rude, dislike someone, or share your rude thoughts about them online. Snarky comments fall into the category of opinions or exaggerations—ex. “She thinks she’s better than everyone else.” While hurtful, these comments are generally protected speech under the First Amendment unless they arise to the level of defamation or tortious interference.
What is Defamation?
Defamation occurs when false statements are presented as facts to a third party, causing harm to your reputation or business—ex. “They’ve scammed their followers out of money.” For defamation to occur, other people must believe the falsity and there must be a harm to reputation or business—ex. a brand no longer wanting to work with an influencer or creator after their reputation was tarnished from lies.
Is Defamation Against Influencers Illegal?
If defamation occurred and these claims are false and harmful, you may have grounds for legal action. Defamation can be difficult to prove, as the line between opinion and facts can be blurry and the harm is not always an obvious consequence of the defamation.
What is Tortious Interference?
Tortious Interference is when someone deliberately disrupts another person’s business or contractual relationships with a third party, resulting in financial harm.
For example, if a Redditor contacts a brand to share false information and a brand terminates the partnership, that would be tortious interference.
Is Tortious Interference Against Influencers Illegal?
Yes, it is illegal to interfere with the contractual relationships with others, causing them financial harm. Unfortunately, as more and more brands incorporate morality and reputation clauses into their contracts, the ability for brands to cancel deals based on this type of interference is becoming more commonplace.
For influencers and creators, tortious interference can have serious consequences, especially when false claims or actions by others lead to canceled brand deals. For creators and influencers, this is their job and primary income and should be treated the same as if someone called a troll’s boss and tried to get them fired.
Losing brand deals due to third party interference can directly impact their livelihood and financial stability, making it crucial to protect against unjustified interference.
What Can You Do About Reddit Trolls?
In our firm, we’ve seen brands seek to terminate partnerships after being contacted by Redditors. Unfortunately, jealousy and hate have always been around. Just as the tabloid papers would tear celebrities apart in the past, the Redditors are rearing their ugly heads today.
When snark escalates into outright falsehoods that damage your reputation, or interfere with your brand deals through terminations—unmasking Reddit and Instagram users and sending a cease and desist letter might be the next step. This legal warning can deter further harmful comments and demonstrate that you’re serious about protecting your brand. The right lawyer can craft a targeted cease and desist letter, outlining the specific defamatory claims and tortious interference and demand that they cease immediately.
Depending on your situation, you may choose to keep the letter private to avoid drawing more attention to the snark. Alternatively, a public statement about your legal actions can signal that you won’t tolerate lies about your brand. Many influencers work quietly in the shadows while others blatantly call out Reddit trolls for their abusive and defamatory behavior.
Here’s what you can do:
Don’t let the haters bring you down! Focus on building and growing your business—go big while others stay small.
Review Your Contracts—know what you’re agreeing to. What’s the termination language? Is there a morals clause that allows a brand to cancel due to gossip?
Trademark Your Name—protecting your intellectual property (name, handle, brand) is one way you can prevent others from using your name in a disrespectful way or as the title of a subreddit or hate site.
Monitor Reddit—if brands are canceling on you due to snark, it’s time to beat the haters at their own game. Monitoring Reddit to get doxxing comments removed and unmask Redditors interfering with your business can be a full time job, but may be worth it for your sanity and the safety of your livelihood and family.
Collect Evidence—this is the time to take all the screenshots, documenting everything! Ask you followers to report illegal comments from Redditors such a doxxing, personal information about your family’s privacy, or anything that would be considered defamation.
Build a Team—don’t waste your time reading hateful comments from keyboard warriors—build a team to do it for you. Whether you’re working with an assistant, PR, or legal team, having people you trust is the best thing you can do.
What you do is up to you and when you’re ready, we’re here to help.
Snark is an unavoidable part of being in the public eye, but you don’t have to let it derail your brand. By understanding the line between snark, defamation, and tortious interference and taking proactive steps to manage your reputation, and enlisting professional help when needed, you can protect your image and maintain your brand deals.
Remember, you have rights and resources at your disposal—don’t let the Redditors get the last word. With the right approach, you can stay true to your brand and come out stronger on the other side.