Cambodian satire in the age of Facebook and ‘trolls’

[geovalin]

Audrey Wilson and Vandy Muong

Today’s young Cambodian satirists don’t sign names to their work. They stamp it with a ‘rage comic’ logo, post it on Facebook and wait for the likes to roll in. That is, if they call themselves satirists at all. They prefer ‘troll’: Troll Khmer, Troll Second-Hand, Troll BestFriend. These pages have blossomed over the last two years, with cohorts of meme-making commentators behind them. The formula is simple: find a photo, add a comment, repost. Their ‘like’ counts now rival some celebrities and politicians.

Sopheap* leads a team of three on his Facebook page, Troll Khmer. He dresses sharply, speaks quietly and insists on anonymity. “We have 300,000 people who like our page,” he said in an interview this week. “We have to keep it interesting.”

Many of the pages’ posts are nonsensical, use base humour or are downright mean. One quotes a simple saying in Khmer: “Some people have no songsa [sweetheart] – perhaps it is because of destiny . . .” A “rage comic” interrupts. “No, it’s because of your face,” it says.

LONG AND EXCELLENT ANALYSIS TO BE READ HERE http://www.phnompenhpost.com/post-weekend/cambodian-satire-age-facebook-and-trolls