Many Twitter users might have wondered why in the last couple days an increasing number of users’ names were put in between triple parentheses.
It all started last week when Mic published an investigation into a sinister Google plugin called “Coincidence Detector,” which was apparently used to track down and list the names of Jewish figures working in media and entertainment. Most of the names on this “blacklist” database were those of journalists and they were listed in between triple parenthesis.
Mic detailed in their story how the white supremacists started to use this punctuation construction, also called an (((echo))), to “expose” Jews and then harass them on social media, specifically on Twitter.
The Google extension turned out to have 2,473 users and a list of 8,768 names. It promised to “help you detect total coincidences about who has been involved in certain political movements and media empires.” The punctuation marks themselves appeared to have a far right connotation, as “all Jewish surnames echo throughout history”.
Jonathan Weisman, a novelist and deputy Washington editor at The New York Times, was one of many journalists who received anti-Semitic “echo” messages, which he brought to public attention last month. He also announced his plan to quit Twitter after it failed to stop the trolls’ harassing attacks.
One of the Times' social media gurus went through the worst of the Nazi anti-Semites and forwarded them to @twitter.
— Jonathan Weisman (@jonathanweisman) June 8, 2016
.@twitter response: we see nothing here that violates our rules.
— Jonathan Weisman (@jonathanweisman) June 8, 2016
I will leave @twitter to the racists, the anti-Semites, the Bernie Bros who attacked women reporters yesterday. Maybe Twitter will rethink
— Jonathan Weisman (@jonathanweisman) June 8, 2016
Last week, Google confirmed that it removed the plugin as it violated its hate speech policy. Twitter has now allegedly removed 30 of the Nazi troll accounts. However, the battle has taken a more interesting turn.
When social media users found out about “Coincidence Detector” many started to put the triple parenthesis around their names to spread awareness of the anti-Semitic issue.
A call to action was initiated by Yair Rosenberg, a senior writer at the online Jewish magazine the Tablet, who Tweeted : “Want to raise awareness about anti-Semitism, show solidarity with harassed Jews & mess with the Twitter Nazis? Put ((( ))) around your name.”
Want to raise awareness about anti-Semitism, show solidarity with harassed Jews & mess with the Twitter Nazis? Put ((( ))) around your name.
— (((Yair Rosenberg))) (@Yair_Rosenberg) June 3, 2016
I have German heritage. Be confused, neo-Nazi trolls!
— Laurby (@laurby) June 6, 2016
@femscreenwriter yes twitter has become the haven for horrible leftist nazi trolls!
I just block them.
— Ron Hutchcraft™ (@Ron_Hutchcraft) June 5, 2016
Twitter makes possible so many amazing things we couldn't do before. Like trolling the Nazis: pic.twitter.com/OnlxoIhLGn
— (((Yair Rosenberg))) (@Yair_Rosenberg) April 14, 2015
