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A growing number of female writers and journalists are being subjected to intense harassment online, often in response to seemingly mundane posts or articles. Even women who aren't professional writers or bloggers experience a kind of harassment online that is more graphic and violent in nature then the kind of trolling done to men. 

Danielle Citron, professor at the University of Maryland's Carey School of Law and author of "Hate Crimes in Cyberspace," joined The Daily Circuit to talk about the impact of these attacks on women.

"It can be incredibly silencing for people," she said. "It drives people offline and it has a real cost, an economic and social cost for people. It's true that so often when victims talk back, it produces a much more furious response... That can be provocative to the mob and really costly for the victim."

New York magazine columnist Ann Friedman talked about what she does when she receives harassing tweets and emails:

How Ann Friedman deals with Internet trolls, harassment by MPR News

On the show, Friedman referenced a recent This American Life episode where writer Lindy West interviewed one of her trolls. Listen here:

Lindy West - This American Life #545 - BLEEPED VERSION by This American Life

What Male Writers Don't Understand About Cyberstalking

Mad Men: Inside the Men's Rights Movement--and the Army of Misogynists and Trolls It Spawned

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Big Books & Bold Ideas with Kerri Miller

Kerri Miller Feature

Why do women disproportionately experience threats and violence online? What can be done about it?

The dangers of being a woman online

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Full discussion: http://bit.ly/16pyO53
On The Daily Circuit Feb. 4, 2015, New York magazine columnist Ann Friedman joined a discussion about what it's like to be a woman online. Host Kerri Miller asked her how she deals with harassing tweets and emails she receives. 

The dangers of being a woman online

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