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Infamous SFist Troll Peter Ragone Is Now Working For Mayor De Blasio
By
Jen Chung
Published Jan 7, 2014
Modified Jan 7, 2014
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NYC Mayor's Office
By
Jen Chung
Published Jan 7, 2014
Modified Jan 7, 2014
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Dear Gothamist comments trolls: Please join us in a warm welcome to Peter Ragone, Mayor de Blasio's new senior advisor. He's probably signed up for a Disqus username already so he can defend de Blasio—because that's what he did while working for San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom in 2007. And then SFist exposed his nom-de-trolling, John Nelson, as a sock puppet.
When Ragone was communications director for Newsom, he started commenting on SFist with his real name. When SFist editors were trying to confirm that it truly was him, they realized that his IP address matched a commenter named "John Nelson":
Someone with the exact same IP address as Peter's, a "John Nelson," has been leaving comments on SFist, too. Mr. Nelson's comments have a similar style and tone to Peter's: mainly that Gavin Newsom is great and SFist Rita is really biased (oh, and one about how ABC 7's Dan Noyes is biased against the mayor, and one about the T-Third). Nelson's posts started up in earnest right around the election, but his first post was back in May 2006. We've included a screen shot of our search results after the jump. (Here are links to Peter's comments from that same IP address for comparison.)
Now, this IP address thing isn't a completely exact science. Maybe Peter has a roommate named "John Nelson"? Maybe Peter's DSL provider assigned two unconnected people the exact same IP address and it's just an amazing coincedence that they have similar views and writing styles? Maybe Peter's slacker neighbor is piggybacking on Peter's connection? We just don’t know for sure.
Ragone claimed that Nelson was his friend. The SF Chronicle reported, "About comments posted under Nelson's name, Ragone said: 'There have been times when I've done them myself.' Another posting backing Newsom, also from Ragone's computer, was signed by the name 'Byorn.' If the posting was made from his computer, Ragone said, 'it must be me' -- but he didn't recall doing it."
A little later, Ragone got his pal John Nelson to emerge and defend him, "Everything with my name on it is my view or came from my discussion with Peter. At times, I said, 'Sure, go ahead and post that for me."
Still, Ragone admitted to sock puppeting and resigned from Newsom's office.
Blah blah blah Ragone has a long career working for big Democratic names, from Andrew Cuomo at HUD to Bill Clinton (the 1996 re-election campaign). The NY Times, which says that Bubba's 1996 campaign is where Ragone and de Blasio met, reports, "His exact job description was not made entirely clear." But we're guessing he's going to be spending most of his time debating "on line" vs. "in line" with you guys in the comments!
The press release from the Mayor's office reads, "Peter Ragone will serve as a Senior Advisor, building on an extensive career as a spokesman and strategic advisor for mayors, governors and federal officials," and highlights how he "played a crucial role in crafting Newsom's major policy issues ranging from same-sex marriage to universal healthcare to homelessness." Ragone himself siad, "It’s an honor to serve a mayor and an administration dedicated to achieving big things. New Yorkers have waited 20 years for this progressive moment, and it’s our charge to deliver. I know what it takes to turn an opportunity like this into real, lasting change. We’ll be focused on leaving no ally, no resource, and no tool idle as we seize this moment."
Word to the wise, Peter: Don't threaten Police Commissioner Bratton in our comments—the NYPD will arrest you.
Tagged
comments troll
internet troll
john nelson
mayor de blasio
peter ragone
sfist
sock puppet
original
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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